Government identified 35 districts for increasing tur and 13 districts for urad cultivation
Stepping up efforts to help the country achieve pulse self-sufficiency, the government has identified 35 new districts for increasing tur cultivation and 13 districts for urad cultivation, bringing more area under coverage of the two kharif (summer) pulses where it will distribute high-yielding seeds. In 2023-24, India imported all major pulses, including tur, urad, masoor, chana, and yellow peas, due to low domestic production due to erratic rainfall, spending approximately $3.74 billion in total.Policymakers continue to be concerned about food inflation, which is driven by pulses and vegetables. According to government data, pulse prices increased by 21.64 percent year on year in June, more than doubling the 9.21 percent increase seen a year earlier.
“We’ve been going from village to village, convincing farmers to switch to pulses,” a senior official said on the condition of anonymity, adding that the promise of guaranteed procurement helped. Also Read | Government will buy all Masur, Urad, and Tur dal produced by farmers
Previously, cooperation minister Amit Shah urged farmers to grow pulses on a large scale, promising unlimited procurement at the higher of the minimum support price and the market price. The government has resolved to make India self-sufficient in pulse production by 2027.
The ministries of agriculture and consumer affairs are registering farmers in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Gujarat, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Tamil Nadu to cultivate tur and urad.
Agencies such as the National Co-operative Consumers’ Federation of India have distributed high-yielding seed varieties to farmers in order to increase acreages. According to government data, the area under pulses increased by 14 percent year on year to 10.2 million hectares as of July 26, up from 8.94 million hectares the previous year.
Also Read | Govt will ensure MSP for rubi season masur dall – NAFED
Though India is the world’s largest producer of pulses, domestic consumption exceeds production. Annual consumption is estimated at 28 million tonnes, and it is steadily increasing as people’s purchasing power grows, while supply has failed to keep up.India’s production of tur and urad has fallen over the last two years, forcing the government to relax import restrictions. Last year, it put tur, urad, and masoor under a zero-duty import regime until March 2024.The deadline has now been extended till March 2025.
In December 2023, the Centre allowed duty-free imports of yellow peas until March 2024, which was later extended until June. Additionally, the government removed the 40 percent import duty on chana to facilitate its import.
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