Agri Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan says Centre committed to procure pulses at MSP

New Delhi: Union Minister for Agriculture Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday said that the Centre has committed to procuring tur, urad, and masur pulses at Minimum Support Prices (MSP).

The minister who chaired a virtual meeting with state agriculture ministers, also invited state agriculture ministers to Delhi for a detailed meeting on agricultural scenarios and to address issues collectively.

Chouhan emphasised the need for crop diversification towards cash crops and soil fertility restoration. He urged states to strengthen their seed delivery systems and state seed corporations.

Procurement of pulses at MSP aimed at encouraging crop diversification and achieving self-sufficiency in pulse production by 2027.

The minister praised states for increasing pulse production by 50 per cent since 2015-16 but called for further efforts to improve yield per hectare, an official statement said.

Chouhan noted that India has reduced its dependency on pulse imports from 30 per cent to 10 per cent over the last decade, achieving self-sufficiency in moong and chana.

Key initiatives announced are New Model Pulses Village scheme to be rolled out from the current Kharif season; utilisation of fallow lands after rice harvests for pulse cultivation; vigorous promotion of tur inter-cropping; establishment of 150 Pulse Seed Hubs for quality seed availability besides the development of climate-resilient and short-duration crop varieties