NAFED, SFAC to procure 40k tons pulses for Rs 350 crore

To create a buffer stock, the government has asked co-operative NAFED and Small farmers Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC) to procure 40,000 tonnes of pulses at an estimated cost of Rs 350 crore.
In view of higher dal prices in the retail market, the government had decided to create a buffer stock so that it can intervene in the market in case of future price rise.
"The union government has decided to set up a buffer stock of pulses," Minister of State for Agriculture Mohanbhai Kundaria said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
The procurement of tur and urad to create a buffer stock in the current Kharif marketing season by Nafed, SFAC and the Food Corporation of India (FCI) at prevailing market prices is being done with assistance from Price Stabilisation Fund.

"NAFED and SFAC have been directed to procure 30,000 tonnes of tur and 10,000 tonnes of urad at an estimated cost of Rs 350 crore, while Rs 50 crore have been released to FCI for undertaking the procurement," he added.
The procured stocks would be first allocated to states based on their demand. In case states do not lift either full or a part of the procured pulses, these pulses would be given to Kendriya Bhandar and Mother Dairy for sale through their outlets.

Alternatively, these pulses may be sold in open market on NCDEX or any other electronic platform in the transparent manner. "The procured pulses will be disposed off within one year of end of procurement period to consumers".

In reply to a separate query, Kundaria said the
government had asked the States in June this year to procure stock of gram lying with various branches of Nafed as per their requirements.
"The states apprised were Assam, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Jharkand, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, NCT of Delhi, Uttarakhand, Jammu & Kashmir and Odisha. Nafed had also apprised Tamil Nadu, Chhatisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, regarding availability of gram and tur. No reponse in this regard was received from any of the State governments," he added.
India is the world's largest producer of pulses, still it has to import about 4-5 million tonnes to meet the domestic demand.

Production of pulses dropped by 2 million tonnes in the 2014-15 crop year (July-June) to 17.2 million tonnes on deficient and untimely rains, resulting in abnormal rise in retail prices, which crossed even Rs 200 per kg mark last month.