Posted on July, 3, 2023 at 09:43 am
In response to the surge in tur prices caused by reduced production, the Centre plans to release 50,000 tonnes of tur (arhar or pigeon pea) from its national buffer stock. This release will continue until imports from East African countries become available in the market starting from August.
According to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, tur production for the period of 2022-23 (July-June) has been estimated at 3 million tonnes (mt), while domestic consumption stands at 4.4-4.5 mt. This production shortfall can be attributed to the impact of wilt disease and unseasonal rainfall experienced in September-October of the previous year.
Furthermore, the prices of tur have been rising due to the delayed and weak monsoon, which has hindered farmers from carrying out kharif sowing.
Prices were hovering at ₹10,200-10,750 a quintal in key markets of Maharashtra and Karnataka on 2 June, while those shrank to ₹10,100-10,150 per quintal on 26 June, said Union Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh. All-India average retail prices of tur dal, however, remain as high as ₹130 a kg as against ₹122 on 2 June, according to the department’s price monitoring cell data.
The central government on 2 June imposed stock limits on tur and urad by invoking the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 to prevent hoarding and unscrupulous speculation and to improve affordability for the consumers. Under this order, stock limits have been prescribed for tur and urad until 31 October this year for all states and UTs.
“It takes a while for the price impact to be reflected at the retail level as it comes at the last of the value chain," Singh said.
Meanwhile, a spike in kharif pulses price pushed up pulses inflation to 6.6%, which is a concern for the government.
The Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA) directed National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation (NAFED) and National Cooperative Consumers Federation (NCCF) to dispose of tur through an online auction.
The Centre currently has around 120,000 tonnes of tur in its buffer stock, including imported stock procured from the domestic market. Due to lower production and higher market prices, farmers preferred to sell their produce to traders, millers and stockists in 2022-23 (September-March) kharif season. Thus, the procurement by the agriculture ministry was negligible.
Since January of this year, India has already imported approximately 600,000 tonnes of tur, and it is projected to import an additional 600,000 tonnes from countries including Myanmar, Sudan, Mozambique, Malawi, and Tanzania in the current financial year, which began in April.
During the previous financial year, India imported around 890,000 tonnes of tur through private trade. Tur is an important kharif pulse and constitutes nearly 15% of India's overall pulses consumption. It is predominantly consumed in the southern regions of the country.
Source: Mint