18 Sept 2025
Amid robust domestic production and record imports, prices of key pulses—including tur, urad, masoor, and chana—have fallen below the Minimum Support Price (MSP), raising concerns among farmers and industry stakeholders.
Currently, imported urad and chana are trading below their MSP of Rs 7,800 and Rs 5,650 per quintal, respectively. Prices of imported tur, masoor, and moong are reportedly 10–20 percent lower than MSP. Prolonged low prices may discourage farmers from sowing chana and masoor in the upcoming rabi season.
Traders and processors have urged the government to impose import duties on yellow peas and other pulses to prevent landed costs from falling below MSP, a move expected to incentivize domestic cultivation. Satish Upadhyay, Secretary of the India Pulses and Grains Association, emphasized, “The decline in mandi prices must be curbed through higher import duties so that farmers receive remunerative prices and are encouraged to expand pulses acreage in the next season.”
India imported a record 7.34 million tonnes (mt) of pulses in 2024-25. The government currently allows duty-free imports of yellow peas, tur, and urad until March 31, 2026, while bengal gram and masoor carry a 10 percent import duty valid through FY26. India sources 15–18 percent of its annual pulses requirement from countries including Africa, Myanmar, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Canada, Russia, and Australia.
Domestic pulses production in 2024-25 is estimated at 25.23 mt, up 4 percent from the previous year. Kharif sowing of pulses—including tur, urad, and moong—has covered 11.27 million hectares, marginally higher than last year. Tur acreage, however, saw a slight decline to 4.39 million hectares.
Inflation in pulses has moderated from the previous year’s peak of 113 percent in August 2024 to 13.76 percent in July 2025. Overall cereal inflation eased further to 3.03 percent, remaining in single digits for several months.
As per government sources, against the buffer norm of 3.5 mt, agencies including NAFED and National Cooperative Consumers Federation currently hold 2.48 mt of pulses, mainly moong (0.90 mt), masoor (0.64 mt), and tur (0.60 mt). The buffer stock, created in 2019, is maintained to stabilize prices through the Market Intervention Programme, funded through both government procurement and the Price Stabilisation Fund for imports.
The Agriculture Ministry aims to further boost pulses production to 29.9 mt in the 2024-25 crop year, representing a 23 percent increase over 2023-24, to strengthen India’s self-reliance in pulses.