Context:
The Union Cabinet approved a ₹ 11,440 crore Mission for Atmanirbharta in Pulses, aimed at boosting domestic pulse production, reducing import reliance, and strengthening India’s food security, nutrition, and environmental sustainability.
Pulses are central to the Indian diet, providing protein and micronutrients, but India remains dependent on imports:
- 2024-25 imports: 7.3 million tonnes (mt), worth $5.5 billion, surpassing the 2016–17 record of 6.6 mt.
- Projected demand-supply gap: 15.7 mt by 2030, narrowing to 4.5 mt by 2047 (NITI Aayog report).
Challenges in Pulse Production
- Low productivity: India produces 27.4% of global pulses but has the lowest yield among top 10 producers, at 0.74 t/ha—less than half of Ethiopia or Canada.
- Cultivation constraints: Pulses are grown on marginal lands with limited irrigation and fertilizer use.
- Limited acreage: Large areas, such as rice-fallow lands, remain underutilized.
- Post-harvest losses: Storage challenges lead to 5–7% losses, affecting availability and price stability.
Mission Interventions (2025–26 to 2030–31)
- Seed and Variety Development
- Distribute 12.6 million quintals of certified seeds.
- Provide 8.8 million free seed kits to farmers.
- Promote climate-resilient and high-yield varieties.
- Expansion of Cultivable Area
- Add 3.5 million hectares, mainly rice-fallow lands.
- Encourage intercropping pulses with sugarcane in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.
- Using just one-third of rice-fallow lands in 10 states could increase output by 2.85 mt.
- Minimum Support Price (MSP) and Procurement
- Assured procurement of tur (pigeon pea), urad (black gram), and masoor (lentil) at MSP for four years.
- Incentivises farmers to diversify from water-intensive crops like paddy.
- Post-Harvest Management and Value Addition
- Set up 1,000 processing and packaging units with subsidies up to ₹ 25 lakh per unit.
- Reduce storage losses, add value, and stabilise prices.
- Institutional Support
- Strengthen Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs).
- Promote mechanisation, soil health interventions, and biofertilisers.
- Provide adequate credit facilities and technical support.
Benefits
- Enhances domestic pulse production, reducing import dependence.
- Improves farmer income and incentivises crop diversification.
- Promotes sustainable agriculture: pulses fix nitrogen in soil, require less water, and reduce reliance on chemical fertilizers.
- Supports nutrition security, particularly in protein-deficient diets.
