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Why your tur dal has become so expensive

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mkrishna100

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[h=1]Why your tur dal has become so expensive[/h]
October 15, 2015 17:25 IST

'If the money we spend on importing pulses reaches our farmers, there won’t be any suicides'
'There has been an overall increase in the prices of almost every commodity. But I don’t see the anger in people’s eyes'
'It is time the PM concentrates more on domestic policies than foreign policy because a lot of things require the PMO’s intervention'
http://www.rediff.com/business/interview/interview-why-your-tur-dal-has-become-so-expensive/20151015.htm
Just as onions left many crying, it is now the turn of pulses (dal). The price of the poor man’s staple has doubled and there is no visible measures to check its spiraling growth. While India has reached self-sufficiency in many food items, which includes milk, rice and wheat, it has not been able to do the same with pulses. While all these revolutions had their own god fathers like Varghese Kurien or M S Swaminathan, pulses, one of the most used ingredients in the Indian kitchen, had not found support from any quarter. Approximately an annual import bill of $2.6 billion is incurred by India only on pulses. If this amount were to reach our farmers, they may never think of leaving farming – leave alone committing suicide.

Binu Alex, co-founder and editorial director of www.commodityonline.com, in an interview to Syed Firdaus Ashraf/Rediff.com, says the lack of policies or clarity on agriculture planning has led to this crisis which is not going to abate in the near future.
Why this sudden spike in retail price of pulses especially with Diwali being round the corner?
As a rule, the demand for all commodities reaches a peak during the festival season in India. Pulses are no exception. But this time, the prices of most lentils have peaked well before the festive season. This means a further pinch in the budget as Diwali approaches.
Yes, India is facing a crisis because of deficient rainfall. But we cannot blame this alone for this crisis. We already have a huge pulses’ deficit and this kharif season will make matters worse. If you compare the retail price of tur dal, it was Rs 76 in June 2014 and it peaked to Rs 101 in June 2015 and now it stands at around Rs 170.
The case is also the same with urad dal. To make matters worse, kharif output of pulses has fallen 21 per cent over the past four years, to 5.63 million tonnes in 2014-15. Crisis is mainly in tur and urad dals, two of the most consumed pulses, as total pulses’ production dipped to 17.2 million tonnes last year against 19.25 million tonnes in the previous year.
How much pulses do we consume and how much does India produce?
Domestic production may be just 17 mt against the demand of 27 mt. Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh are the major pulse-producing regions followed by Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telengana. Surprisingly, Canada’s Saskatchewan province is India’s saviour. Though consumption of pulses in Canada is meagre, this province is looking to overseas buyers and India consumes most of it, leaving nothing to others. Can you imagine, farmers in this province are looking to festivals in India, China, Pakistan and other South Asian countries to plan their crop? Ukraine, the US, Australia, Myanmar and a few African countries also contribute to India’s pulses need.
Why do we have to depend heavily on imports for our lentil needs?
Let’s go back to the last five decades. Pulses production in India has shown less than 40 per cent growth during this period and this has led to almost halving the per capita availability to 30 grammes now. So this precisely means the prices are doubling at an alarmingly low periodicity.
We also have to take stock of the Green Revolution and what it has achieved. Though we are self-sufficient in rice and wheat, crop rotation has made the soil of some of the northern states, where it all began, unfit for use. The result is there for all to see. But crop rotation and diversification could have helped retain the soil. But we never put other essential commodities in this agriculture cycle and the net result is that the farmers of Canada, Myanmar and Australia are benefitting instead of our own.
Approximately, India’s annual import bill of pulses alone is $2.6 billion. Imagine this reaching our own farmers, they may never think of leaving farming – leave alone think of committing suicide. Just see the granaries of public distribution system like Food Corporation of India warehouses. Wheat and rice are rotting because we are over-producing both. Why can’t we replace one of these with pulses? The question is, who will the farmers go to if something goes wrong with these decisions?
Do Indian farmers want to produce pulses? Is it profitable?
It is not that we cannot incentivise the production of pulses. There are many ways to do it and India’s climate is suited to grow most of the lentils we consume. But I believe there have been no policies or clarity on agriculture planning. If Saskatchewan with less than a million population and cultivated farmland area of nearly 19 million hectares accounts for 65 per cent of the world’s lentil exports and 54 per cent of the world’s pea exports, why can't we as an agrarian economy feed ourselves?
Which are the crops that the government helps farmers to grow?
Commodities are political hot potatoes. They are used as vote bank by all parties in India. Farmers are therefore merely statistics for political establishments.
This Minimum Support Price mechanism is also not transparent and depends on various political factors. It has nothing to do with demand and supply or simple economics. Some of the lentils do come under MSP but they are not attractive enough for farmers to concentrate merely on pulses. Since the prices of pulses are at their peak now, farmers have the MSP benefit on cotton unlike pulses, so they are most likely to stop producing pulses now that the prices are higher. And most of all, cotton is convenient to stock. So it is a matter of convenience and price recovery for farmers.
It is for the government to look into this with a balanced approach. Not all pulses come under the ambit of MSP. But more than MSP, it is procurement guarantee that matters.
Can we see India self-sufficient in lentils anytime soon?
No. Not in the near future. To feed our growing population we need at least 30 million tonnes of lentils by 2030 which is close to five per cent growth annually. We are no way near. So we will continue to burn our foreign exchange reserves forever.
Yes, we can reduce it by seriously considering a proactive approach towards commodities. A two-pronged approach -- to enhance productivity by using government subsidised technology and a cent per cent assurance from the government that it will procure all the pulses through some agencies like the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India or Food Corporation of India -- may help.
I have been maintaining that our agriculture universities have failed to provide any worthwhile inputs in this regard. They merely act as academic institutions working out of the campus. The farmers are left to fend for themselves in such an important decision-making process.
Is it true that the government restricted the import of pulses earlier this year?
Pulses are given the benefit of duty-free import. But inter-ministerial issues are dogging this decision because the agriculture ministry says it will put the interest of farmers to risk while the food ministry wants to control inflation. We have not yet heard this duty-free exemption extended after September 30 when it was supposed to expire. Now I don’t understand why both cannot run simultaneously. You fix a price for pulses and procure the entire stock from the farmers and make up for the rest through imports.
Why do governments continue to wake up only in crisis time? Is it true that all big decisions depend on the PMO and not the ministries, and no files move without the PM’s okay and that is why no quick decisions on such issues is possible?
Import of lentils is a regular process carried out year round depending on the stock, demand and domestic supply. There are specified agencies which do this job. Once the tender is accepted and order is given, it takes three to four months for the goods to arrive via ocean freight from any port, whether it is Adelaide or Vancouver. Myanmar is closer so we get it faster. There has to be meticulous planning, complete de-centralisation of decisions and a proper monitoring on the demand that leads to robust supply in the market. I don’t see that it has happened this time around.
Whether it is because the decisions are centralised is a matter of speculation. But in hindsight, it is time the PM concentrates more on domestic policies than foreign policy because a lot of things need to be done which requires the PMO’s interventions.
Is it true that pulses are selling today at Rs 160 per kg instead of Rs 80?
Yes, they are. There is nothing anyone can do to control this because this is purely market-driven and is the result of demand and supply equilibrium. What the government can do is to intervene by putting more supply into the market which is not happening now. Until that happens, prices will rise.
Has the Modi government and state governments failed to crack down on hoarders of pulses? When is the next crop of pulses and by when can we expect prices to fall?
Hoarding of commodities by traders and speculators is a never-ending process. The government acts when prices get out of control. It is like a policing job. The cops arrive only after a crime happens. The best practice is not to give the hoarders any chance.
The next crop is scheduled to arrive in January. But that is insignificant since we are heavily dependent on imports. The government has revealed that 3,223 tonnes of pulses have already reached JNPT Mumbai and Chennai port and by October 20, 2015, the entire quantity of 5,000 tonnes originally tendered, would arrive. In addition, government has ordered further 2,000 tonnes of tur.
As far as sowing is concerned, it is actually more than last year. By early September, sowing was reported over 10.84 million hectares, from 9.76 mn ha at the same time last year. But harvesting may not yield better results because of adverse climatic conditions.
Some people also feel that after the beef ban the consumption of pulses has gone up because many more people are eating pulses, is that true?
No. Dal cannot be replaced by meat. It has no connection at all except that lentils do provide plenty of protein just like most meat. So it is actually a good substitute for each other.
The government first failed to check the prices of onions and now lentils. What steps does the Modi government need to take to keep a check on food inflation?
By merely checking the prices of pulses, inflation is not going to be under control. There has been an overall increase in the prices of almost every commodity. But I don’t see the anger in people’s eyes. They are now destined to live with it. And even if they vent their anger, a situation that has come out of economic indecision cannot be reversed by political maneuvering.
From what I can perceive as a person with no information of what is going on inside the corridors of power, it looks like the government is not getting correct and sage advise. There is no concrete economic action on the ground.
Apart from discussions on roads, statues, smart cities, Internet and elections, we are not discussing or acting on the real ground situation. To a large extend the media is also at fault because it has ceased to be a mirror to the government. The Modi government cannot take any step different from its predecessor at this moment because it is less than two years old and any new and revolutionary steps have to be preceded by major policy decisions.
 
Modi and his government have no ideas about agriculture or even governing a large and multi-cultured country, with endemic corruption at all levels. What Modi does is some 'stuntman' activities and he is at his best in so doing when he is in developed foreign countries.

Most agricultural commodities are under the real control of large darmers and politicians of different states. Government of India can get full information about these people and how they go about, if only the government is sincere and honest. But no government will do that because political parties are funded by these very same hoarders/blackmarketeers.

Even now in the importing of pulses hundreds of crores of black money must have been generated and stashed away in some safe haven. An efficient enquiry will bring this out.
 
The issue is really shortage of some food commodity of mass consumption. Earlier it was onion, now pulses. It will shift to some other item if govt procures a lot for

mass consumption. There are vested interest groups who create shortage of vital items of mass consumption. This is irrespective of which govt is in power. So why

blame this govt alone?
 
Poor monsoon, shortage, demand and supply conditions, crop failure, farmers suicide are all eye washes. You get anything for more more money. How do you get. Now everybody knows how to manipulate prices and when. Jana Sangh and BJP without ModiJi has been traders' government. With ModiJi it is now the conglomeration of big business, traders and parivarwallas. BJP used to call road meetings, station meetings, etc to highlight price increases.Now there are no roads or stations! I agree when there is a demand for money, the prices go up; when there is a shortage of money, the prices go up. It is euphemistically called economic boom. What will follow is economic doom. India will exist if ordinary people exist. Not if Congress or BJP only exist. The talk of economy and its varieties of caste, creeds, etc. just humbugs to fill media spaces or the empty heads of coat-suit people. There are thousands to cry "Nehru failed". There is none to cry "Gandhiji failed. Because ModiJi succeeds in his realm.
 
Where does a 12% decline translate as 100% increase? In the bizarre world of India's food math. Production of pulses slipped down by 12% in 2014-15 compared to the previous year. As a result, prices of this essential item have zoomed up by more than 100% across the country. The government is scrambling to retrieve the situation, especially because an important election is being fought in Bihar and the festive season is just beginning. It's a kind of an onion moment - where merciless spikes in onion prices in the past led to political upheavals.

But why are pulses on fire? Here are the basics: India consumes around 23 million metric tons (MMT) of pulses. This is an aggregate of a variety of pulses including gram (chana), tur or arhar, mung, masur and urad. Pulses are the main source of protein for a very large number of people in the country - each 100 grams contains about 32 grams of proteins and several amino acids not made by the body. So, it is an essential part of Indian meals. Naturally, India is the largest producer and consumer of pulses in the world.

But India's production of pulses has stagnated at around 18-19 MMT for several years now. The shortfall between production and consumption is made up by imports, mainly from Canada, Myanmar and some African countries.

This balance has been maintained at a huge cost to the people. A population growing at the rate of about 2% per year in the past decade should have quickly overtaken the pulses rate of growth which was less than half of that. This has not happened because the amount of pulses consumed per person has relentlessly declined over the past several decades. From about 61 grams per person per day in 1951 to about 42 grams in 2013.

This year the balance has been rudely and dramatically upset. In 2014-15, production of pulses was clocked in at 17.4 MMT - a decline of 2.4 MMT or 12% over the previous year. This was caused by various factors including unseasonal rains, pests, and unprofitable prices for offered to farmers even as import duties were waived.

49426068.cms


This decline appears to have been seized as an opportunity to make a quick killing by traders - both domestic and global. There are reports of pulses stocks lying in warehouses at ports as traders wait it out and allow shortages to pump up prices even more. And, exporters in touch with producers from Canada (mainly lentil or masur), Myanmar (mainly tur) and Australia (mainly chickpeas or Kabuli chana) have hiked up the rates because India is the biggest player in the pulses import market.

So, in 2014-15, India has imported 4.6 MMT pulses, up 31% compared to the previous year. International prices have risen in tandem from Rs 32 per kg to Rs 50 for chana, from Rs 56 to Rs 75 for lentil, from Rs 40 to Rs 90 for tur, and from Rs 50 to Rs 77 for urad between October 2014 and August 2015 according to the latest agriculture ministry profile.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...ubled-Heres-the-math/articleshow/49426042.cms
 
Checked my grocery note book and in Dec 2014 Thuvar Dal was priced at Rs.96/ Kg and in July 2015 it was Rs 123/Kg and on October 15 , 2015 it was Rs.206 / kg and as on date ( i.e Mon 19 Oct 2015 ) it is priced Rs.250-Rs.270/kg and it is expected to cross Rs.300/kg soon . If Thuvar Dal was a stock then it is turning out to be the biggest multibagger for those who invested in it in Dec 2014 .
 
The PM, it seems, is concentrating more on his foreign trips and receptions there, instead of local issues, especially food items.

BJP lost Delhi in the late 1990s and never recovered afterwards due to price rise of onions. The senior leaders have totally forgotten this.
 
The PM, it seems, is concentrating more on his foreign trips and receptions there, instead of local issues, especially food items.

BJP lost Delhi in the late 1990s and never recovered afterwards due to price rise of onions. The senior leaders have totally forgotten this.

He wants to boast to people all over the world about the Acche Din that is India is facing now after her came to power .
 

Is dal the new pyaaz?


The price of dal is the big talking point in the Bihar elections. But the govt must think farther than immediate electoral considerations — and focus on incentivising production in the long run.


dal-759.jpg


Till about a month back, it was onions at Rs 50-plus a kg that was giving the BJP-led government the jitters. Now, arhar and urad at Rs 150 and more is the major talking point in the Bihar Assembly polls. Whether dal would be the pyaaz of this election, as some reports have begun to suggest, will be clear next month.

The reasons for the spurt in dal prices are well known.

See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/explained/is-dal-the-new-pyaaz/#sthash.lU69GM7a.dpuf
 
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2000 tons of Thuvaram paruppu is being imported...JJ is now planning to give this @ Rs 55/500 grams in Ration shops effective Nov 1, 2015 ...A really progressive step...Welcome this!!
 
2000 tons of Thuvaram paruppu is being imported...JJ is now planning to give this @ Rs 55/500 grams in Ration shops effective Nov 1, 2015 ...A really progressive step...Welcome this!!



Sir,

When compared to Tamil Nadu Government in this particular issue, Delhi Government seems to be more smart.

It is reported that Delhi Government has already initiated action to supply tur at the rate of Rs.120/= per kg and the report which is dated 19[SUP]th[/SUP] says that they have sold over 200 quintals through over 100 outlets of Kendriya Bhandar and Safal in Delhi during last 4 days,

With Navrathri falling during this month, it would have been nice if the Tamil Nadu Government also acted with such smartness.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com...ted-tur-at-rs-120/kg/articleshow/49453752.cms
 
Government acts against hoarders, over 5,800 tonnes of pulses seized

The Centre on Tuesday said action against hoarders and blackmarketeers has been stepped up and the state governments have seized over 5,800 tonnes of pulses in five states over the last few months.

This is basically aimed at boosting supply and bringing down prices of tur dal that have shot up to Rs 200 per kg.
The Cabinet Secretary today reviewed the prices, production, procurement and availability of pulses in a meeting with secretaries of Consumer Affairs, Agriculture, Commerce and other ministries.

The meeting also reviewed the action taken by state governments to prevent hoarding of pulses, besides discussing about progress of sale of imported pulses at subsidised rates in Delhi and other states.

“We had directed state governments to enforce the Essential Commodities Act more stringently. As a result, some state governments have carried out surprised inspections and seized large quantities of pulses,” Consumer Affairs Secretary C Vishwanath told PTI after the meeting.

Read more at: http://www.rediff.com/business/repo...er-5800-tonnes-of-pulses-seized-/20151020.htm
 
The issue is really shortage of some food commodity of mass consumption. Earlier it was onion, now pulses. It will shift to some other item if govt procures a lot for mass consumption. There are vested interest groups who create shortage of vital items of mass consumption. This is irrespective of which govt is in power. So why blame this govt alone?

Blaming the Central Government for every thing considered "bad" has become a fashion of the day.
The Constitution has clearly defined the legislative powers of the Union Government and State Government in Seventh Schedule, wherein specific areas of governance are distributed under i) Union list, ii) State list and iii) Concurrent list.

State List:
Among a total of 69 subjects in which are exclusive legislative powers of the State, some of the subjects enlisted in the list are given below:
Public Order and Police1. Public order (but not including the use of any naval, military or air force or any other armed force of the Union or of any other force subject to the control of the Union or of any contingent or unit thereof] in aid of the civil power).
6. Public health and sanitation; hospitals and dispensaries.
14. Agriculture, including agricultural education and research, protection against pests and prevention of plant diseases.
26. Trade and commerce within the State subject to the provisions of entry 33 of List III.
27. Production, supply and distribution of goods subject to the provisions of entry 33 of List III.

Concurrent List:
The Concurrent List gives power of Central Government to intervene and help the State in the subject of control of prices of essential commodities in
Entry 33. Trade and commerce in, and the production, supply and distribution of,-
(a) the products of any industry where the control of such industry by the Union is declared by Parliament by law to be expedient in the public interest, and imported goods of the same kind as such products;
(b) foodstuffs, including edible oilseeds and oils;
(c) cattle fodder, including oilcakes and other concentrates;
(d) raw cotton, whether ginned or unginned, and cotton seed; and
(e) raw jute.

Thus the responsibility of controlling prices lies both with State and Central Governments.
Price rise is not an isolated or new incident, it is a continuous problem taking place during the previous Governments as well.

I would consider the following factors to be considered for the price rise:

Demand and supply:

The inadequacy of agricultural output to match the rising demand is an important factor causing the price level to rise from the supply side. With demand for these goods generally inelastic, even marginal change in output cause disproportionate increase in prices.


Importance of agriculture:

Both Central and State Government should give importance to agriculture. Several committees under eminent scholars like Dr M S Swaminathan has cautioned about this impending crisis in their reports from time and again.
Steps taken by the Governments do not seem to be adequate.

Development and inflation and growth of population:

All the developing countries face this problem.The people who base agriculture as a means for living find difficult to continue their prfession and migrate to cities for earning paper currency. The rapid growth of population and Change in food habits added with increase in the income of some sections of population are other factors for the price rise.

Gandhiji has warned about this time and again in his writings. Earning money alone will not fillup the stomach. As Tiruvalluvar had told long ago "the entire population follows the man who plough the fields". Let us not give away the fertile fields to the industries and housing colonies. That is what is happening in Cities like Bangalore and Chennai.

Brahmanyan,
Bangalore.
 
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Blaming the Central Government for every thing considered "bad" has become a fashion of the day.
The Constitution has clearly defined the legislative powers of the Union Government and State Government in Seventh Schedule, wherein specific areas of governance are distributed under i) Union list, ii) State list and iii) Concurrent list.



Gandhiji has warned about this time and again in his writings. Earning money alone will not fillup the stomach. As Tiruvalluvar had told long ago "the entire population follows the man who plough the fields". Let us not give away the fertile fields to the industries and housing colonies. That is what is happening in Cities like Bangalore and Chennai.

Brahmanyan,
Bangalore

Dear Sir,

Good analysis...Central & State Governments should have acted against the hoarders with alacrity much earlier not after the prices have hit the roof

I specifically like the above 2 statements....Blaming Central Government will not solve the problem...Also giving away fertile land for setting up industries is ultimately harmful for the country

I got Tur Dhal in Safal outlet at the rate of Rs 120/kg..It looked a bit hard..But after soaking in water & boiling it it tasted so good
 
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Dear Sir,

Good analysis...Central & State Governments should have acted against the hoarders with alacrity much earlier not after the prices have hit the roof

I specifically like the above 2 statements....Blaming Central Government will not solve the problem...Also giving away fertile land for setting up industries is ultimately harmful for the country

I got Tur Dhal in Safal outlet at the rate of Rs 120/kg..It looked a bit hard..But after soaking in water & boiling it it tasted so good
Bangalore

The central government (and, particularly Mr. Modi) are blamed now for mainly two reasons.
1. In his pre-election avatar Modi boasted too much about his government bringing "acche din" for people, which implied lower inflation and control over food prices. He boasted so much that it appeared he had some magic wand with him, which the UPA did not have.

2. Modi and BJP blamed Sonia & Manmohan Singh for the onion price rise of 2013.
 
The central government (and, particularly Mr. Modi) are blamed now for mainly two reasons.
1. In his pre-election avatar Modi boasted too much about his government bringing "acche din" for people, which implied lower inflation and control over food prices. He boasted so much that it appeared he had some magic wand with him, which the UPA did not have.

2. Modi and BJP blamed Sonia & Manmohan Singh for the onion price rise of 2013.

Food inflation is well under control except for prices of pulses...Please see it for your self the data for past 5 years

india-food-inflation.png
 
Acche din aagaye. ModiJi ke liye. His people are making good money. This year's poor rain is logged on to last year's stock. Government has sold out PSUs for money. The order will be different. Onion or Potato, Daal, Sugar, Spices and Oils will be in that order. This government is out to ensure that there will be no government copying Morarji Desai's government. Golden Days and Rama Rajya for traders and businessmen and industrialists. Manmohan Singh never spoke and this governement will not allow you to talk because it has least tolerance and brutal majority of people who can be likened to the state of Sugriva Sena after killing of Vaali.
 
hi

all traders has to pay money for politicians/political parties.....the agriculture was neglected.....water/river problems....

population/purchasing power increased....so scarscity/price rise inevitable......
 
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