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Govt should aim to buy targeted quantity of pulses.
Sep 06, 2022

Low procurement of pulses, not even one per cent of target in case of urad, is unlikely to ensure minimum support price (MSP) for the farmers.

Data collected by BusinessLine shows that pulse procurement is low and the Union Cabinet’s decision last week to raise procurement limit may remain ‘on paper’ unless there is a clear policy on 'procurement and disposal', experts said.

The Union Cabinet last week raised procurement limit of tur (pigeon peas), urad (black gram) and masur (luntil) to 40 per cent from 25 per cent of production.

Data gathered by BusinessLine show that only 0.7 per cent of sanctioned 2.25 lakh tonne (lt) of urad and 5.2 per cent of 7.1 lt of tur could be procured from last year’s crop by the Centre through its agencies — Nafed and Food Corporation of India (FCI).

Moong was slightly better, 16 per cent of 4.7 lt (sanctioned quantity) could be purchased. Data also show that mandi prices (all India average) were 5-16 per cent below MSPs during the procurement period.

Normally, the government defends the low procurement by claiming higher mandi prices or States’ poor performance. However, data points to lack of a political will to take any decision since higher mandi prices of pulses will also mean more inflation. The retail inflation in pulses was 0.18 per cent in July from the year-ago period.

'As India is not self-sufficient in pulses, the government cannot keep a huge reserves creating artificial shortage in the market. Whatever quantity is to be procured beyond buffer norms has also to be sold out somewhere and open market auction is the only option left when pulses are neither demanded by States nor distributed under the National Food Security Act (NFSA),' said a former managing director of Nafed.

Procurement policy

The current policy allows government to re-imburse losses to certain extent and not full when Nafed buys at MSP and sells at market rate, the agency’s procurement policy also keeps this aspect as to how much quantity it can buy, the former official said adding there is no such limitations for wheat and rice. Raising the procurement limit ‘on paper’ will have no meaning unless target is also met particularly when farmers sell below MSPs in mandis, he added.

According to Agmarknet portal, moong prices in top producer Rajasthan were 22.3 per cent below MSP of Rs.7,275/quintal during November-January of 2021-22 when the government procured the pulse crop in the State.

However, it could buy only 57,260 tonnes though the sanctioned quantity was 3.61 lt. From Karnataka, the government purchased 13,980 tonnes out of 30,000 tonnes sanctioned, 46.6 per cent of the target, which was the highest for any crop among all States.

Uttar Pradesh was the only State where urad in mandis were sold above MSP between March and July this year, the main arrivals period and there was no procurement of the crop despite 63,000 tonnes approved.

Criticising the Centre’s move not to include moong and chana in the higher limit of 40 per cent, Kisan Mahapanchayat’s president Rampal Jat said that since masur has been included in the decision which shows that the move is also for rabi-grown pulses, there should be no restriction of quantitative limit on procurement of all pulses and oilseeds as done in paddy and wheat.

thehindubusinessline.com

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