India explores MSP reset to boost pulse output

Mint

3 hours ago

The Centre is exploring a plan to review the formula it uses to calculate the minimum support price (MSP) for key pulses such as tur (arhar), urad (black gram), chana (gram), and masur (lentil), four people familiar with the matter told Mint on condition of anonymity.
This comes amid rising concerns over stagnant production, growing imports, and skewed price incentives that fail to reflect current demand trends.
As per the proposed plan, which is in discussion, the government is exploring whether the current cost-based pricing mechanism adequately reflects the ground realities faced by farmers. The MSP has to be aligned with demand, consumption, and production patterns to incentivize farmers and encourage crop diversification, they said.
The move comes amid concerns that floor prices that are of same level as input costs or even lower are discouraging farmers from planting more pulses, despite India's high import dependence.
Read more: Centre plans to leverage high productivity in northeastern states to boost output of pulses, ease food inflation
"The ministries consumer affairs, agriculture, and cooperation will hold discussions to draft a plan for increasing the domestic production of key pulses, particularly the costlier tur," said the first person cited above. There has been a sharp spike in imports of tur from African nations and Myanmar, contributing to a rising import bill.
Queries sent to the ministries of consumer affairs, agriculture, and finance remained unanswered at press time.
Mission for Aatmanirbharta in pulses
This review is part of a six-year Mission for Aatmanirbharta (self-reliance) in pulses, which aims to make India self-sufficient in pulse production within a decade.
While the MSP for tur for the 2025-26 crop year is set at ₹8,000 per quintal, moong fetches a higher ₹8,868 per quintal, despite lower demand.
"Moong is a 60-70-day crop and is cultivated three times a year, while tur is a 120–160-day crop. Given the price sensitivity of tur, there is a need for a targeted approach to increase its production," said the second person.
Moong (green gram) is cultivated over three main seasons—kharif (June-August), rabi (October-December) and the summer season (March-May) after the harvest of rabi crops.
In contrast, tur (pigeon pea) is primarily a kharif crop, sown with the arrival of the monsoon between June and July and harvested between November and January. It is typically cultivated only once a year.
Alongside price revision, the Centre is also planning to provide better quality seeds to improve yield and bridge the demand-supply gap.
A stakeholder consultation with relevant ministries is expected later this month to outline a strategy.
The government is also exploring region-specific procurement strategies to stabilize prices in pulse-growing zones and reduce supply chain inefficiencies, according to one of the four people.
Tur is widely consumed in states such as Maharashtra, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat, while moong has niche consumption in Rajasthan and southern states. Tur production has stagnated, dropping from 4.3 million tonnes in FY21 to 3.5mt in FY25, with yields falling from 914 kg per hectare to 823 kg/ha over the same period.
In contrast, moong production has risen from 3mt in FY21 to 3.8 mt in FY25, and yield has improved from 601 kg/ha to 685 kg/ha. Tur consumption, however, remains higher than moong.
According to government estimates, tur consumption stood at 4.6mt in FY23, compared with 3.5mt for moong.
Retail data from 9 June shows tur is priced at ₹124.08 per kg, while moong is cheaper at ₹111.41 per kg.
The MSP for masur is ₹6,600 per quintal and for chana is ₹5,650 per quintal.
In her FY2025-26 budget speech, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced the Mission for Aatmanirbharta in pulses, allocating ₹1,000 crore to boost domestic production, with a focus on tur, urad and masur. The mission promises assured MSP-based procurement and post-harvest warehousing.
The area sowed for pulses grew marginally to 27.62 million hectares in FY25, with tur cultivation at 4.33 million hectares compared with 4.13 million hectares the previous year.
India's overall pulse production dipped to 24mt in FY24 from 26mt in FY23 due to poor weather but is expected to recover to 25mt in FY25.
"The proposed strategy to significantly increase the production of pulses over the next five years will be part of the Mission for Aatmanirbharta in pulses," said a third person.
Read more: In charts: Why a good pulses output is an urgent need this year
Under the plan, the government aims to increase the sowing area of tur by expanding cultivation to fallow land as well as watershed areas. The Centre has also identified two million hectares of fertile land across the country for this purpose, as it was first reported by Mint on 3 December 2024.
These two million hectares, earmarked for pulses, form part of a larger pool of four million hectares of watershed land identified for farming. Watershed land refers to areas where rainwater naturally collects and flows into rivers, streams, or lakes. Such land retains moisture, making it suitable for growing pulses.
The five-year strategy is likely to include targeted investment in irrigation and farmer training for pulse-intensive zones, said the fourth person aware of internal discussions.
Binod Anand, agriculture expert and a member of the government's committee on MSP, welcomed the plan. 'Boosting domestic production will ease the pressure on foreign exchange, as we currently spend nearly ₹70,000 crore on importing pulses from non-consuming countries," he said.
'If even 25% of that amount is redirected to support Indian farmers, it would significantly enhance domestic cultivation and reduce our reliance on imports."
'Given the shifting geopolitical landscape," Anand added, 'it is imperative to incentivize pulse farmers and move towards self-reliance, especially since India remains heavily dependent on countries like Myanmar, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Malawi for tur."
Government data shows India's pulse imports surged from 2.6mt in FY23 to 6.7mt in FY25—a nine-year high—due to a favourable duty regime and softer domestic prices.
Retail inflation, meanwhile, eased to a six-year low of 3.16% in April, driven by declining prices of protein-rich food items, including pulses. Food inflation dropped to 1.78% in April 2025, its lowest since October 2021.
Read more: What colour is your dal? If it's yellow, the US wants a free pass.