The government is being forced to increase purchases of pulses and oilseeds at their respective minimum support prices (MSPs) because the mandi prices of most of these products are below these MSPs. Trade sources attribute the decline in market prices to liberal imports and encouraging harvest prospects.
In contrast to the MSP of Rs 7550/quintal for the 2024–25 season, the mandi prices of tur at Latur, Maharashtra, on Friday fluctuated between Rs 6800 and Rs 7400/quintal. Our farmers have been receiving prices that are about 35% more than MSP over the past two years due to decreased yield prospects. In contrast to the goal of one million tons (MT), the government organizations Nafed and NCCF have only bought 0.24 LMT of tur from farmers thus far.
Chana, which accounts for around half of the nation’s pulse production, saw mandi prices in Kota, Rajasthan, vary from Rs 4900 to Rs 52000 per quintal on Friday, compared to the MSP of Rs 5650 per quintal for the current season.
Chana procurement activities have started in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. These two states have only bought roughly 5,000 tons.
Five MT of pulses—tur, chana, urad, masur, and moong—will be purchased under PSS in the major growing states of Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Maharashtra throughout the rabi and kharif seasons, according to the agriculture ministry.
The agriculture ministry has authorized the procurement of 2.8 MT of mustard under PSS for the current rabi season in the following major producing states: Rajasthan (1.3 MT), Madhya Pradesh (0.49 MT), Uttar Pradesh (0.47 MT), Haryana (0.33 MT), Gujarat (0.12 MT), Assam (62,774 tonne), and Chhattisgarh (3050 tonne).
During the kharif season, central agencies working with state governments bought nearly 2 million metric tons of soybeans and 1.5 million metric tons of groundnuts from 1.3 million farmers in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Gujarat, Telangana, and Uttar Pradesh, respectively. This is in contrast to the small amount that was bought during previous crop years. 15% to 18% of India’s yearly consumption of pulses and 58% of its edible oil are imported, respectively.
