On Production of Pulses in India – Attaining self-sufficiency

Source: This post on Production of Pulses in India has been created based on the article “Attaining self-sufficiency” published in “Business Standard” on 8^th January 2024.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 3 Agriculture – Major crops-cropping patterns in various parts of the country.

News: The article discusses the benefits of increasing production of pulses in India. It also highlights the constraints in increasing production and the steps that can be taken to tackle the challenges.

India is the largest producer, consumer, and importer of pulses in the world.

What are the benefits of increasing production of pulses in India?

1. Address food-security concerns.
2. Address environmental challenges.
3. Reduce Import bill.
4. Addressing protein deficiency: Pulses are a source of dietary fibres and plant-based proteins.
5. Enhancing soil fertility: Pulses can fix nitrogen in the soil.
6. Low Water Requirement: Suitable for cultivation in rain-deficient or depleting groundwater regions.

What are the govt’s initiatives for increasing pulses production?

The government recently stated its objective of achieving self-sufficiency in pulses by the end of 2027.

Tur Dal Procurement Portal: Farmers can register and sell their produce to the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) and the National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India (NCCF).
The government also hopes to launch similar facilities for urad and masoor dal procurement in the future.

Hike in MSP: There have been several hikes in the minimum support prices (MSPs) of different varieties of pulses.

What is the current status of pulses imports?

India’s imports of pulses have come down from a high of 6.61 million tonnes (mt) in 2016-17 to 2.7 mt in 2021-22, and further to 2.52 mt in 2022-23.

The imports have declined mainly due to a sharp decline in the import of yellow peas (matar) and chickpea (chana) over the past 10 years, due to high import duties and procurement.

What are the constraints with pulses production in India?

Low Yields: The low yield arises mainly from those being grown in marginal and sub-marginal lands with low input usage.

Storage Issues: Pulses are difficult to store and their shelf life is shorter than that of wheat and rice.

What should be done?

1. Improving productivity of pulses cultivation.
2. Increased land under pulses cultivation: Diversion from paddy must be encouraged in water-deficient states such as Punjab.
3. Higher MSPs: It can incentivise farmers to shift to pulses, resulting in higher availability and consumption at reasonably stable prices.

Question for practice:

What are the benefits of increasing production of pulses in India? What should be done to achieve this?