2015 wheat output could fall by 4-5% due to unseasonal rains

Farm minister says output to be affected

India's wheat output prospects in 2015 appeared to have been hit by unseasonal rains during the harvest season, farm minister Radha Mohan Singh said on Tuesday.

"There's some initial reports that suggest wheat output could drop by 4-5% due to unseasonal rains," Singh told a conference of state representatives.

In February, the farm ministry's initial estimate put this year's wheat production at 95.76 million tonne compared with 95.85 million tonne in 2014.

India bought up to 80,000 tonne of Australian wheat in recent deals, the biggest such imports by the country in five years due to unseasonal rains.