India’s ban on export of non-basmati white rice may continue till at least November as the country remains apprehensive about the impact of El Nino on the sowing of kharif crops, a government official aware of the matter said.

“There are a lot of predictions on how El Nino might impact Kharif crops; the government has erred on the side of caution, so, in case El Nino has an impact, the government would have already taken action,” the official told Moneycontrol, on condition of anonymity.

Any decision on rolling back the prohibition can only be considered after the sowing season for Kharif crops ends, enabling the government to assess the yield for the current year, the official said. He added that a decision to lift the ban would be based on the performance of the monsoon crops.

Behind New Delhi’s stance of keeping the ban on some rice exports until November at the least is not only to keep a check on domestic prices but also to ensure sufficient availability of the grain, the official added. As of August 7, retail prices of rice had risen 10.63 percent on year, whereas in the wholesale market, they had registered a spike of 11.12 percent in the comparative period.