Rajasthan CM urges Centre to ease restrictions in export of guar gum

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Monday urged the Centre to remove bottlenecks in the export of guar gum, often used as a thickening agent in food production, besides opening a national level research centre in the state.

Gehlot has written a letter to Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal specifying that Rajasthan is a major producer of guar gum but has seen its international market price fall sharply due to newer replacements in the industrial sector.

The income of guar producing farmers in the state has come down and many have stopped its cultivation, he said in the letter.

As a result, adequate research is needed to increase the farmers' income apart from widening the use of guar gum, the letter stated.

The chief minister urged Goyal to formulate a plan for the research and development of guar gum and pointed out that the state government has also allotted land in Jodhpur district for this purpose.

Gehlot said with the linking of trading guar gum to NCDEX, there is uncertainty in its trading on the exchange. Farmers producing guar do not get any benefit and it would be appropriate to take out the Guar Gum Refined Split from the exchange platform.

National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange Limited (NCDEX) is an online commodity exchange that provides a platform for market participants to trade in commodity derivatives.