India’s Response to Food Crisis
“To put it mildly, [converting food crops to biofuels] is foolish; to put it strongly, it is a crime against humanity.”
India considers ban on trading in food futures
By Raphael Minder in Madrid
India is considering a blanket ban on trading in food futures, highlighting growing concerns in Asia over the role of hedge funds and financial market traders in the recent surge in commodities prices.
An emergency move by India to shut down its food futures market, proposed on Monday by P Chidambaram, the finance minister, would reverse measures introduced only five years ago to aid the development of India as a financial centre.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Asian Development Bank’s annual meeting in Madrid, Mr Chidambaram also lambasted the conversion of crops into biofuel as “the single biggest reason why we are facing this [food] crisis”. His comments came a day after US president George W. Bush said India was partly responsible for rising food prices.
“To put it mildly, [converting food crops to biofuels] is foolish; to put it strongly, it is a crime against humanity,” Mr Chidambaram said . . .
