{"id":85778,"date":"2025-12-31T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-31T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/mena-india\/?p=85778"},"modified":"2026-01-05T07:11:28","modified_gmt":"2026-01-05T07:11:28","slug":"indias-rice-export-share-faces-groundwater-pressure-in-key-states","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/mena-india\/2025\/12\/31\/indias-rice-export-share-faces-groundwater-pressure-in-key-states\/","title":{"rendered":"India\u2019s rice export share faces groundwater pressure in key states"},"content":{"rendered":"

India\u2019s boom in rice exports \u2014 which supply key Gulf markets \u2014 is deepening groundwater stress in key producing states, Reuters<\/a> reports. Current export volumes could be threatened if water depletion continues, sparking fears of an export ban return<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Supply squeeze: India accounted for just over 40% of global rice exports in 2023-24, shipping out a majority of the 20 mn tonnes of supply from Punjab and Haryana. These states now have groundwater levels now classified as \u201cover-exploited\u201d or \u201ccritical\u201d by government assessments, with water tables falling to between 80-200 ft in places, compared to 30 ft below ground a decade ago. Some farmers are installing deeper tubewells and spending more on pumping systems to maintain output, adding pressure on already-strained water reserves.<\/p>\n

Gulf exposure: Saudi, Iraq, Iran, and the UAE are major markets for Indian rice \u2014 particularly premium basmati. If core producing states continue to be shackled by groundwater stress, supply constraints will rocket for import-dependent regions such as the Gulf and North Africa. India imposed export restrictions back in 2023 to manage domestic prices, and similar curbs remain a policy lever whenever food supply output tightens.<\/p>\n

The hidden water trade: Producing 1kg of rice requires 3k-4k liters of water, so Gulf nations are essentially importing bns of cubic meters of Indian groundwater at prices suppressed by Indian state subsidies.<\/p>\n

Our take: We are currently in a \u201crice glut,\u201d with record low prices of USD 338 per ton as of this month, but this is a false floor. India is currently caught between domestic farmer protests and long-term water survival. The moment New Delhi prioritizes the latter, the Gulf's \u201cjust-in-time\u201d rice supply chain will face its greatest stress test since the 2007 food crisis. Saudi Arabia and the UAE are aggressively pivoting to agri-tech investments and African land-grabs \u2014 \u201cde-risking\u201d from Indian staples isn't just wise, it's urgent.<\/p>\n

!_InsertIndia-GCCSponsorBlock_!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

India\u2019s boom in rice exports \u2014 which supply key Gulf markets \u2014 is deepening groundwater stress in key producing states, Reuters reports. Current export volumes could be threatened if water depletion continues, sparking fears of an export ban return. Supply squeeze: India accounted for just over 40% of global rice exports in 2023-24, shipping out […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":85779,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_primary_brand":0,"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2480],"tags":[2750,2402,2544,2749,2748,2738,2441],"brand":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"class_list":["post-85778","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trade","tag-climate-risk","tag-enterpriseam-india","tag-exports","tag-food-security","tag-india-mena-business","tag-supply-chain","tag-trade","wpautop","entry"],"acf":{"mongo_id":"ebda1c0f-1ef1-4279-b152-b75450ac2604","order":"5","is_powered_by":false,"story_type":"1","photo_url":"https:\/\/ent.news\/2025\/12\/1442.jpg","photo_position":"above","homepage_title":"","full_issue_title":"MENA rice imports threatened as India\u2019s key rice producing states face groundwater stress","related_issue":[85770],"teaser":""},"yoast_head":"\nIndia\u2019s rice export share faces groundwater pressure in key states - MENA India Corridors<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/mena-india\/2025\/12\/31\/indias-rice-export-share-faces-groundwater-pressure-in-key-states\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"India\u2019s rice export share faces groundwater pressure in key states\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"India\u2019s boom in rice exports \u2014 which supply key Gulf markets \u2014 is deepening groundwater stress in key producing states, Reuters reports. 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