CCEA Gives Nod For Creating Buffer Stock Of Pulses

CCEA - The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved proposal for creation of buffer stock of pulses with effective from current year itself. 

The Cabinet has approved procurement of about 50,000 ton pulses from the kharif crop 2015-16 and one lakh ton out of arrivals of rabi crop of 2015-16. Procurement of pulses will be done at market prices through Food Corporation of India (FCI), National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd. (NAFED), Small Farmers’ Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC) and any other agency as may be decided,” according to an official statement.
 

The procurement in kharif and rabi 2015-16 will be done at market price above Minimum Support Price (MSP) out of the Price Stabilisation Fund.
 

The CCEA also decided to import pulses, if necessity arises, through a public sector enterprise of Ministry of Commerce. In case the prices fall below MSP, pulses for buffer stock will be procured at MSP under price support scheme of department of agriculture, cooperation and farmers welfare.
 

The decision to create a buffer stock of pulses to deal with wide fluctuation in prices is an important step for checking food inflation. This will also encourage farmers to take up pulses production on a larger scale and will enable India to help achieve self-sufficiency in pulses in a few years.
 

Although India is the highest producer of pulses in the world, its domestic demand outstrips domestic production. Though, the shortfall is met from imports, but long-term solution to meet demand for pulses lies in increasing pulses production in the country.
 

The government promotes cultivation of pulses mainly through NFSM which covers 622 districts in 27 states for Pulses. Around 50 per cent allocation of NFSM is made for pulses. Under NFSM financial assistance is given for various interventions like demonstration of improved technology, distribution of quality seeds of new varieties, integrated pest management, water saving devices and capacity building of farmers.