Centre Plans to Make India Self-sufficient in Pulses in Next Three Years

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The centre has prepared a plan to focus on increasing the production of pulses to make the country self-sufficient over the next three years.

The plan will be implemented by increasing productivity further. The pulses production which was 18.24 MMT during 2010-11 rose to the record level of 26.96 MMT during 2021-22, an increase of about 48 percent.

The government has initiated a number of measures for boosting pulses production in the country in recent years with the aim of reducing the dependence on imports. As a result, India’s import of pulses dropped by 60 per cent between 2017-18 and 2022-23 as their production increased by 9 per cent.

“We have devised a plan to increase the production every year in some identified States over the next three years, which will help us to get the sufficient additional output of pulses by 2025-26, to bring down import to zero level,” an official source in the Agriculture Ministry told The Hindu Business Line (HBL).

Starting from this year, a target of 45.5 lt has been set for tur, 23.88 lt for urad and 16.95 lt for masur-a rabi crop, sources told HBL.

In recent years, not only the production of pulses has increased but the area and yields have also increased exponentially due to the systematic efforts of the government. In 2015-16, 24.91 million hectares (Mha) area was under pulses with an average yield of 656 kg/ha. In 2021-22, a 30.37 Mha area is under pulses with an average yield of 888 kg/ha.

Under NFSM-Pulses, incentives are given to the farmer for cluster demonstration, seeds distribution & production of certified seeds of High Yielding Varieties (HYVs), farming tools, efficient water-saving devices, plant protection chemicals, nutrient management, soil ameliorants and training to the farmers.

Source: firstpost