Deputy Chief Minister and State Finance and Planning Minister Ajit Pawar has written to the Centre, urging urgent intervention to halt the illegal import of substandard raisins from China. These imports, which allegedly bypass customs duties and taxes, are causing significant financial losses to both grape farmers and the national exchequer, he said.

In letters addressed to Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, Pawar outlined the detrimental impact of these imports on raisin prices in India, particularly during the peak marketing season.

As per a representation from the Maharashtra State Grape Growers Association in Pune, there has been a marked surge in the illegal entry of substandard Chinese raisins into the Indian market, his letters stated.