National Self-Reliance in Pulses Mission

A nationwide Self-Reliance in Pulses Mission was launched from the Food Legumes Research Centre (FLRP), Madhya Pradesh, under the chairmanship of the Union Agriculture Minister.

Current Status of Pulses in India

Global Position: India is the world’s largest producer, importer and consumer of pulses, accounting for ~24–25% of global production, ~27% of consumption, and ~13–15% of global imports.
Foodgrain Share: Pulses occupy ~20% of India’s total foodgrain area but contribute only ~7–9% of total foodgrain output, reflecting persistent yield gaps.
Seasonal Pattern: Pulses are grown in both Kharif and Rabi seasons, with Rabi pulses contributing around 60–62% of total production, led by gram and lentil.
Import Surge: India’s pulse imports in FY25 are estimated at ~6.5–6.8 million tonnes, the highest level in nearly a decade, driven by domestic supply tightness.
Yellow Pea Dependence: Yellow pea imports crossed ~2.0 million tonnes in FY25, accounting for about 30–32% of total pulse imports, as duty-free access and price arbitrage encouraged inflows.

Core Features of the Pulses Mission

Seed-to-Market Focus: Mission adopts an end-to-end value chain approach covering seed research, on-farm practices, assured procurement, processing, and organised market access.
Cluster Model: Pulses cultivation is organised in geographically contiguous clusters to enable collective input supply, common agronomy practices and direct linkage with processors and markets.
Seed Reforms: Seed release and distribution are decentralised to states and farmer networks, ensuring location-specific varieties and faster dissemination.
Research–Farmer Linkage: The FLRP campus integrates ICAR–ICARDA research directly with farmers, enabling rapid adoption of high-yielding and disease-resistant pulse varieties.
Value Addition Orientation: Mission explicitly shifts focus from raw pulses to protein-rich value-added products, encouraging local processing and branding.

Key Reasons Behind Low Pulse Production in India

Policy Bias: Pulses often lack consistent MSP and procurement compared to rice and wheat, discouraging farmers.
Rain Reliance: Nearly 87% of pulses are rain-fed, making them vulnerable to erratic monsoons and droughts.
Low-Yield Seeds: Limited access to high-yielding and disease-resistant varieties keeps average pulse yield at 850–900 kg/ha, below the global average of 1,200–1,300 kg/ha (FAO, 2023).
Pest Pressure: Crops like moong, chickpea, and arhar suffer 15–30% losses from pod borer, wilt, and other pests due to low adoption of integrated pest management techniques.
Fragmented Farms: Small and marginal holdings (~0.7–1 ha) restrict mechanisation and efficient input use, limiting productivity and investment in improved practices (NFHS, 2023).

Key Government Initiatives to Boost Pulse Production in India

National Food Security Mission (NFSM-Pulses): Boosts area, production, and productivity through HYV seeds, improved agronomy, and demonstrations.
Minimum Support Price (MSP) for Pulses: Regularly revised MSPs ensure price security and encourage pulse cultivation.
Creation of Pulses Buffer Stock (2016): Maintains 2–3 million tonnes of buffer stock to stabilise domestic supply and prices.
Seed Hub Program by ICAR-IIPR: Expands availability of certified, short-duration, and high-yielding pulse seeds at the grassroots level.
PM-AASHA Scheme: Ensures MSP realisation via Price Deficiency Payment (PDP) and targeted procurement by private and public agencies.
Climate-Resilient Varieties Development (ICAR): Develops varieties resistant to drought, pests, and diseases suited to changing climates.

Popular Courses

PMF IAS Comprehensive Test Series For UPSC Civil Services Prelims

Key Challenges Faced

Declining Acreage: Area under pulses fell from 29.3 million ha (2016–17) to ~27.4 million ha (2023–24).
Low Productivity: Average pulse yields in India remain around 850–900 kg/ha, far below the global average of 1,200–1,300 kg/ha, reflecting rain-fed cultivation and input gaps (FAO).
Import Dependence: India imported ~2.8–3 million tonnes of pulses annually (2022–24), exposing domestic markets to global price volatility and forex outflows (DGFT data).
Price Volatility: In bumper harvest years, market prices of chana and tur often fall 20–30% below MSP, discouraging farmers despite official price support.
Processing Deficit: Less than 10% of pulse production is processed near farm gates, which forces long-distance transport and reduces farmers’ share of consumer prices.

Roadmap for Pulses Self-Reliance

Pulse Mills Expansion: Establish 1,000 pulse mills nationwide with up to ₹25 lakh subsidy per unit, enabling decentralised processing, reduced transport costs and local employment creation.
Farmer Incentives: Farmers in identified clusters will receive quality seed kits and ₹10,000 per hectare assistance for model farming to encourage pulses acreage and technology adoption.
Productivity Enhancement: Focused R&D on chickpea, lentil, pigeon pea, urad and moong through early-maturing and disease-resistant varieties to raise yields and reduce climate risk.
Centre–State Coordination: States will prepare crop-and region-specific pulses roadmaps aligned with agro-climatic needs, strengthening cooperative federalism in agriculture.

India’s Pulses Mission sows self-reliance, transforming yield gaps into growth opportunities. As Tagore said, “Faith is the bird that feels the light,” driving innovation, clusters, and value addition for protein security and farmer prosperity.

Reference: PIB | PMFIAS: Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses

PMF IAS Pathfinder for Mains – Question 540

Q. Why do pulses continue to show yield gaps despite policy focus? Identify the top constraints and suggest targeted interventions. (150 Words) (10 Marks)

Approach

Introduction: Write a brief introduction about the pulses in India.
Body: Write top constraints for low pulse yield in India and suggest targeted interventions.
Conclusion: Emphasis on integrated and targeted intervention for protein security and farmer prosperity.