India's Masur Production to Hit Record High in 2023-24 Rabi Season

New Delhi, Jan 12 (PTI) The country's masur (lentil) production is estimated to touch an all-time high of 16 million tonne in the 2023-24 rabi season on higher acreage, Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh said on Friday.

Masur production stood at 15.59 million tonne in the 2022-23 rabi season, as per the official data.

Despite being the world's largest producer and consumer of pulses, India imports certain pulses, including masur and tur, to meet the domestic shortages.

"This year, masur production is going to be at an all-time high. Our masur production will be the highest in the world. The acreage has increased. The dynamic is changing," Singh said at an event organised by the Global Pulse Confederation (GPC).

GPC announced that it will host the 2024 edition of the Global Pulse Convention in New Delhi on February 14-17. The global event will be organised along with the Indian cooperative NAFED in India after 18 years.

In the ongoing rabi season, more area has been brought under the masur crop.
The total masur acreage has increased to 1.94 million hectare as of January 12 in the ongoing rabi season, when compared to 1.83 million hectare in the year-ago period, according to the agriculture ministry data.

The Secretary said the country produces on an average 26-27 million tonne of pulses annually. In chana and moong, the country is self-sufficient but in other pulses like tur and masur, it still imports to meet the shortages.

"While we pitch for self-reliance in pulses, we cannot ignore that for some time to come, we probably need to keep (pulses) imports running," he said.

While the government is incentivising the farmers to grow more pulses, one needs to keep in mind the limited area under cultivation, he added.

Sharing how difficult to balance the farmers' and consumers' interests, the Secretary said, "I think we are doing ok in the last couple of years. Despite weather disturbances, we have managed to keep the prices of pulses reasonably under control".

NAFED Managing Director Ritesh Chauhan said there has been a positive response to the recently launched tur procurement portal.

About 1,000 tonne of tur has been purchased via registered tur farmers within days of the launch of the portal, he added.

Sharing about the global pulses event, GPC Board President Vijay Iyengar said pulses are vital in the development of sustainable food systems. Pulses are key when it comes to food security and nutrition in India.

"The time and place of GPC's New Delhi convention this year could not be more apt as we look at bringing the global pulses industry together to connect and collaborate," he said.

India has done tremendously well to enhance its domestic production and provide cheaper and affordable pulses through various government-sponsored schemes, he added.