CHAPTER -II

PULSE ECONOMY OF INDIA: A MACRO VIEW

Introduction

Pulses are a wonderful gift of nature. They provide nutrition to

human beings and animals. Pulse cultivation improves soil health by fixing
nitrogen. Their importance as a source of protein for masses in India is
well recognized and therefore, their production and availability· assume
special significance for the nutritional security of the people. However,
pulse production in the country is stagnating due . to long standing
problems. This disturbs nutritional balance of the population especially of
poor and weaker sections who cannot afford expensive animal proteins.
The literature survey presented in the previous chapter has revealed that
four decades old strategy for increased pulse production in India did not
yield desired results vis-a-vis its objectives. While Technology Mission on
Oilseeds and Pulses (TMOP) has achieved some success so far as
oilseeds are concerned, results in terms of increasing efficiency of pulse
production in the country are not encouraging. Hence, there is an urgent
need of further research to provide· constructive suggestions. In this
context, it is important to understand the macro issues, which help in
framing pragmatic policies for improving pulse production in the country.
Keeping this purpose in mind, this chapter seeks to examine the important
aspects related to pulse growth from a broad perspective at the all India
level.
This chapter is organized as follows: Section-! briefly describes the
importance of pulses vis-a-vis other vegetable proteins a·nd their
availability in India. Section-11 provides a broader view of production
related aspects while Section Ill examines the status of India in the world
pulse production and· trade. Finally, Section-IV focuse·s on developmental
strategies followed in the past to boos~ pulse production in the country.

31
Section -I: Importance and Availability of Pulses

Importance of Pulses vis-a-vis Other Vegetable Protein Foods

At the outset, it would be useful to examine the chemical

composition of various pulses and other vegetable protein foods, which
can be substituted for pulses. This would help in understanding the
relative nutritive value of pulses.
The importance of pulses becomes more prominent when chemical
composition of major pulses vis-a-vis important cereals and oilseeds is
examined. Table 2.1 indicates that each variety of pulse crops has much
higher protein content in comparison to wheat, bajra, barley, jowar, maize
and ragi. The difference is as wide as more than three times in case of
soyabean and wheat. Similarly, rice stands nowhere when compared to
any of the pulses. Among pulses, highest protein content is found in
soyabean (43.2 g.) followed by lentil (25.1g.) per 100 gms. of grain.
Although, all varieties of oilseeds such as ground nut, linseed and mustard
are rich in protein content but these cannot be consumed in large
quantities due to high content of fats. In addition, some of the pulses
contain higher content of fibres, which are often recommended by doctors
for controlling heart diseases. The essential components of balanced
nutritional food are protein, calcium, fats, fibres and phosphorus. Pulses
are equally rich in carbohydrates but rank below rice and wheat. Unlike
cereals, pulses like horse gram and bengal gram are rich source of
calcium. The highest calcium content is found in horse gram (287 mg)
followed by soyabean (240 mg.) per 100 gms. Soyabean, field bean and
cowpea exhibit higher content of phosphorous in comparison to wheat and
rice but oilseeds are also rich in this regard. Soyabean, lentil and peas
contain good content of iron. Although, groundnut, mustard and linseed
contain higher calories, consumption of pulses also provides more than
300 calories. In a nutshell, pulses are much superior to cereals and

32
 Table: 2.1

Chemical Composition of Pulses, Major Foodgrains & Oilseeds in India

(Value/lOOg of edible portion)

Items Protein* Fat Crude Carbohydrate Calcium Phosphorus Iron Calories
(g) (g) Fibre (g) (mg) (mg) (mg) Kcal
(g)
Bengalgram 17.1 5.3 3.9 60.9 202 312 4.6 360
Blackgram 24.0 1.4 0.9 59.6 154 385 3.8 347
Cowpea 24.1 0.7 3.8 54.5 77 414 8.6 323
Fieldbean 24.9 0.8 1.4 60.1 60 433 2.7 347
Greengram 24.0 1.3 4.1 56.7 124 326 4.4 334
Horsegram 22.0 0.5 5.3 57.2 287 311 6.77 321
Lentil 25.1 0.7 0.7 59.0 69 293 7.58 343
Peas 19.7 1.1 4.5 56.5 75 298 7.05 315
Redgram 22.3 1.7 1.5 57.6 73 304 3.7 335
Soyabean 43.2 19.5 3.7 20.9 240 690 10.4 432
Bajra 11.6 5.0 1.2 67.5 42 296 8.0 361
Barley 11.5 1.3 3.9 69.6 26 215 1.67 336
Jowar 10.4 1.9 1.6 72.6 25 222 4.1 349
Maize 11. 1 3.6 2.7 66.2 10 348 2.3 342
Ragi 7.3 1.3 3.6 72.0 344 283 3.9 328
Rice 8.5 0.6 00 77.4 10 280 2.8 349
Sanwa 6.2 2.2 9.8 65.5 20 280 5.0 307
Wheat 11.8 1.5 1.2 71.2 41 306 5.3 346
Groundnut 25.3 40.1 3.1 26.1 90 350 2.5 567
Linseed 20.3 37.1 4.8 28.9 170 370 2.7 530
Mustard 20.0 39.7 1.8 23.8 490 700 7.9 541
* N x 6.25
Source: Gopa/an, Ramasastry and Subramanium, 1999.

33
 oilseeds in terms of protein, fibres, calcium, iron and phosphorous which
are considered essential for nutritional security of population in India.

Net Availability of Pulses

In common parlance, the term 'dal roti' denotes a poor man's diet.
In recent years, it has begun to sound inapt. For pulses have the dubious
distinction of being the single major food item that has declined sharply in
terms of net availability. The per capita availability of pulses, the major
source of protein for Indians, has fallen by less than half since
independence. This is despite India's success in food production. The
average per capita availability of wheat and rice together has increased
appreciably during this period. The per capita availability of total cereals
which was 334.2 gms. per day in 1951 has risen to 417.3, 468.5, 386.2,
457.3 gms.per day in 1981, 1991, 2001 and 2002 respectively. It has,
however declined to 407.1 gms. in 2003. In case of pulses, it has
drastically fallen from 60.7 gms. per day per capita in 1951 to 37.5 gms. in
1981, 41.6 gms. in 1991, 30 gms. in 2001 and to 29.1 gms. in 2003. In
brief, per capita per day net availability of pulses is woefully lower even
after liberal imports. The requirement for pulses as per physiological
norms set by the Indian Council of Medical Research is 43 gms/day/capita
;J (Table 2.2).
The Planning Commission has revised this norm to 40 gms. per
day per capita in view of increasing consumption of other dietary
proteins. The current net availability however is much below these
norms. This is the consequence of rising population and stagnant pulse
production over the past three decades. The long drawn stagnation in
production of pulses is likely to reduce per capita availability of this
protein rich food in future unless huge imports are resorted to or steps
are taken to enhance production of pulses in India.

34
 Table: 2.2

Net Availability of Pulses in India (1951 to 2003)

(gms/day/capita)
Year Gram Total Pulses Rice Wheat Other Cereals Total Cereals

. 1951 22.5 60.7 158.9 65.7 109.6 334.2

1961 30.2 69.0 201.1 79.1 119.5 399.7
1971 20.0 51.2 192.6 103.6 121.4 417.6
1981 13.4 37.5 197.8 129.6 89.9 417.3
1991 13.4 41.6 221.7 166.8 80.0 468.5
2001 8.0 30.0 190.5 135.8 56.2 386.2
2002 10.7 35.0 228.1 164.4 64.7 457.3
1 2003 8.3 29.1 183.4 178.9 44.9 407.1

Source: Agricultural Statistics at a Glance, Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of
India, New Delhi

Table: 2.3

Share of Food Expenditure on Pulses and .substitute Items in India

(1972-73 to 1999-2000)

Share of Food Share of Food Share of Food Share of total

NSS Expenditure in Expenditure on Expenditure on Food
Total Foodgrains Pulses Expenditure on
Consumption Milk, Meat, Eggs
& Fish
Rural Urban Rural Urban Rural Urban Rural Urban
1972-73 72.9 64.5 46.0 27.1 6.87 5.68 13.44 19.53
(2ih Round)
1977-78 64.3 60.0 37.3 24.5 6.81 6.45 16.17 21.67
(32nd Round)
1983 65.6 59.1 36.3 22.9 5.40 5.75 16.01 21.66
(38th Round)
1987-88 64.0 56.4 30.6 18.7 6.93 6.38 18.59 23.23
(43rd Round)
. 1993-94 63.2 54.7 28.3 17.3 6.18 5.84 20.25 24.13
(50th Round)
1999-00 59.4 48.1 26.2 15.3 6.57 6.14 20.37 24.55
(55th Round)

Source: Report No 454,Household Expenditure in India, 1999-2000,Key Results, National Sample Survey Organisation
Government of India, New Delhi, 2003

35
 In these circumstances, poor are at a greater disadvantage
because they cannot afford expensive animal protein substitutes like
milk, eggs, meat, etc. They may try to substitute cereals for pulses,
which are a poor source of protein. The issue assumes special
significance in view of declining availability of pulses and increasing
availability of cereals. But, for a balanced diet, pulse proteins are
essential due to other rich components. The whole scenario of net
availability of pulses causes serious concern in the country. This should
be viewed seriously from the point of security and quality of food
especially for the poor and the rural population.
The information on per capita net availability is not representative of
actual level of consumption in the country because these estimates do not
take into account any change in stocks in possession of traders, producers
and consumers. The household consumption data on various agricultural
products by income groups are available in the reports of National Sample
Survey Organization. The analysis of details is beyond the scope of this
study. Nonetheless, it would be useful to provide an overview of changing
share of food expenditure on protein items.
An examination of data on proportion of expenditure on foodgrains,
pulses and their substitutes may provide some insights into the changing
pattern of food basket of population (see Table 2.3). A major change that
has now come to the ·forefront is the lower share of total consumption on
food with declining share of food expenditure on foodgrains in urban as
well as in rural areas. The share of pulses in food expenditure has
declined marginally in rural areas between 1972-73 and 1999-2000 but it
has increased in urban areas from 5.68 per cent to 6.14 per cent during
the same period. The share of protein foods such as milk, meat, eggs and
fish has increased in food expenditure. It has increased from 13.44 per
cent to 20.37 per cent of total food expenditure in rural areas and from
19.53 per cent to 24.53 per cent in urban areas. It could be due to rising
incomes and preference for variety in nutritive food with rising availability.

36
Demand and Supply Gap
The review of literature indicates that production of pulses in India
has remained below the estimated demand during the past decades.
Some of the studies have estimated demand and supply gap of pulses
based on domestic production. The projected results varied due to
difference in methodology followed by different researchers. Chopra and
Swam/ had estimated the demand for pulses in India as 14.3 million
tonnes (effective demand) to 17.8 million tonnes (nutritional minimum)
during 1980-81. The National Commission on Agriculture 2 had projected
the consumer demand for pulses as 14.83 to 17.73 million tonnes in
1985 and 20.70 to 24.70 million tonnes in 2000 A.D. These projections
are based on a very high per capita requirement of pulses. The Indian
Council of Medical Research has recommended an average requirement
of 43 gms/day/capita considering the increasing consumption of other
dietary proteins like milk, eggs, etc. The Planning Commission has
suggested that availability of 40 gms/day/capita would be sufficient to
meet the dietary protein requirement in India. Taking into account lower
recommendations, results are not encouraging. Shushan and Sobti 3 and
Narayanmurthl had projected demand and supply gap of pulses for the
period 1994-95 to 2001-02. According to them, requirement of pulses as
per physiological norms at the rate 43 gms/day/capita after including
12.50 per cent for feed, seed and wastage worked out to be around 20
million tonnes indicating a supply deficit of more than 5 million tonnes.

1
Chopra Kusum and Gurushri Swamy, "Pulses: An Analysis of Demand and Supply in India, 1951-1971 ",
Sterling Publishers, New Delhi, 1975.
2
Government oflndia, "Report of the National Commission on Agriculture", 1976
3
Shushan, Brij and Renu Sobti: "Pulses Present Status and Prospects", Yojana, Vol. 36, (3), 1992.
4
Narayanamurthy, A: "Demand and Supply Position of Pulses: A Macro Level Analysis", Productivity, Vol.
41(2), 2000
.I

37
 Table: 2.4

Demand and Supply Projections of Pulses in India

(Million tonnes)
Year Population Consumption Requirement Supply Gap
(Million)
2001-02 1046.50 16.33 13.19 3.14

2002-03 1066.40 16.64 11.31 5.33

2003-04 1086.66 16.95 11.42. 5.53

2004-05 1107.31 17.27 11.53 5.74

2005-06 11.28.34 17.60 11.64 5.96

2006-07 1149.79 17.94 11.75 6.19

Source: Bulletin on Food Statistics, Government of India, New Delhi, 2oo3

Note: (i) Population is projected at the growth rate of 1.9 percent over 2001
(population 1027 million)
(ii) 12.5 per cent is accounted for seed, feed, wastage
(iii) Consumption requirement has been worked out by using normative
requirement of 15.6 kg./year as recommended by National Institute of
Nutrition, Hyderabad
(iv) Supply is projected at 0.96 per cent per annum on the basis of growth of
yield of pulses between 1990-91 and 2000-01.

38
 Based on the above requirement with present rate of population
and yield growth, pulses demand and supply have been worked out for
the years 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07 (Table 2.4 ). The
supply here refers to domestic production. The projected requirement for
human consumption for these years was calculated as 16.95, 17.27,
17.60 and 17.94 million tonnes respectively for the population growth at
1.9 per cent per annum. These requirements have been worked out after
adding 12.5 per cent on account of seed, feed and wastage. In view of
projected domestic production, each year showed a gap of more than 5
million tonnes between demand and domestic production.
In brief, production of pulses has fallen below the demand in recent
years similar to seventies, eighties and nineties. The gap was 3.14 million
tonnes in 2001-02 and that has accentuated year after year. It will reach to
6.19 million tonnes in 2006-07. Thus, magnitude of demand and actual
production gap is anticipated to widen gradually in future. At present,
country is bridging demand and supply gap through huge imports. The
option of importing pulses in the long run does exist (reviewed in Chapter-
8), but over dependence on international market will bring higher instability
in availability of pulses. Therefore, indigenous solution has to emerge in
view of associated problems of procuring pulses from the world market.
Further, with population growth at the current rate, gap between demand
and domestic production of pulses is expected to rise unless technological
breakthrough takes place and production of pulses rises through
improvement in yield.

Section-11: Pulse Production Scenario in India

Pulses occupy an important place in the agrarian economy of India.
As a result, around 11 per cent of cultivated area was devoted to these
crops in the year 2001-02. There are states like Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu, Rajasthan and

39
Uttar Pradesh, which allocated more than .10 per cent of gross cropped
area to pulse crops. The corresponding percentages of GCA allocated to
these crops were 19.50, 16.13, 15.52, 15.11, 13.11, 12.85 and 10.13 per
cent respectively. The main reason for high share of pulses in crop mix of
these states could be that larger proportion of cultivable areas is rainfed
and devoid of assured irrigation facilities, which force farmers to take up
pulse cultivation. In contrast, irrigated states like Punjab and Haryana
accorded low priority to these protein rich crops and devoted as little as
0.79 and 2.22 per cent of GCA despite knowing their capability in
improving soil health and sustainability of agriculture. They are neglected
to the extent that only 16.10 per cent of pulse area in the country is
covered by irrigation. Punjab followed by Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya
Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir
showed more than 10 per cent of pulse area as irrigated. Considering the
importance of improving pulse yield through technological change, these
percentages appear to be very low.

Relative Performance of Pulse Crops

An examination of macro level performance of pulses in terms of growth in
area, production and yield vis-a-vis important cereals and foodgrains
(Table 2.6) reveals that cereals production in India registered a compound
growth rate of 2.81 per cent per annum between 1949-50 and 2002-03. It
is largely contributed by a spectacular growth in the production of wheat
and rice, which grew at the rate of 5.19 and 2.62 per cent per annum,
whereas it was just 0.51 per cent for pulses. Clearly, cereals production
kept pace with the growth in population but pulses lagged behind, as
growth in pulses prod~:Jction was extremely low.
A look at the compound growth rates of area under different crops
presents some interesting facts. The growth rates of area under wheat,
rice, cereals and pulses for the period 1949-50 to 2002-03 varied between
a range of 0.08 and 0.73 percent per annum except for wheat where it was

40
 Table: 2.5

State-wise Percentage of GCA and Area Irrigated under Pulses

State Percentage of GCA (2001-02) %Irrigated (1999-00)

Andhra Pradesh 15.11 1.09

Arunachal Pradesh 1.86 -

Assam 2.84 -
Bihar 8.88 2.14
Gujarat 6.90 13.56
Haryana 2.22 45.40
Himachal Pradesh 3.69 17.00
Jammu & Kashmir 2.66 14.50
Karnataka 15.52 3.09
Kerala 0.80 -
Madhya Pradesh 19.50 21.20
Maharashtra 16.13 28.00
Orissa 8.05 6.6
Punjab 0.79 76.00
Rajasthan 12.85 15.01
Tamil Nadu 13.11 7.50
Uttar Pradesh 10.13 27.31

West Bengal 2.87 -

India 11.17 16.10

Source:Computed from Data on GCA and Irrigated Area. Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of
Agriculture, Government of India, New Delhi, 2003

41
2.04 per cent. However, growth rate of yield per hectare of these crops
differed widely. It was 3.08 per cent, 1.88 per cent and 2.03 per cent for
wheat, rice and cereals but only 0.47 per cent for pulses. Evidences in
literature indicate (Acharya; 1987, 1993) that technological, price and
institutional support for cereals and the lack of similar efforts for the pulses
seems to be the major reason for these differential growth rates.
I
There has been a progressive rise in the irrigated area under
foodgrains during the past decades. It has increased from 18.1 per cent of
sown area in 1951 to 43.9 percent in 1999-00. But, pulses continue to be
grown under rainfed conditions. The extent of irrigated area under total
pulses over different points of time for the period 1950-51 to 1999-00 is
given in Table 2.7. Around 83.9 per cent of the total area under pulses
remained un-irrigated. As against 44 per cent irrigated area under
foodgrains, only 16.1 per cent of the total area under pulses is irrigated.
This shows that pulses are not grown on irrigated lands and have not been
provided with essential inputs like irrigation.
All these developments affected the status of pulses in foodg'rains.
This is reflected in the ratio of area, production and yield (Table 2.7) The
ratio of area declined marginally over the period of 52 years but a
substantial decline in the ratio of production may be noticed. The share of
pulses in total foodgrains production declined from 16.5 per cent in 1950-
51 to 5.6 percent in 2002-03. This is the outcome of slow growth in
productivity of pulses. This is evident from the declining ratio of pulses
yield to foodgrains yield which dropped to 0.33 in 2002-03 from its earlier
level of 0.84 in 1950-51. Consequently, ratio of pulse production to food
grains production also witnessed a declining trend and it stooped to
merely 0.06 in 2002-03 from 0.17 in 1950-51. These results reflect the
worsening position of pulses in total foodgrains scenario of India.

42
 Table: 2.6
Compound Growth Rates of Area, Production, Yield of Rice, Wheat,
Cereals, Pulses and Foodgrains in India (1949-50 to 2002-03)

(Annual Rate)
Crop Area Production Yield

Rice 0.73 2.62 1.88

Wheat 2.04 5.19 3.08

Total Cereals 0.38 2.81 2.03

Pulses 0.08 0.51 0.47

Total Food-grains 0.32 2.44 1.76

Source: Agricultural Statistics at a Glance, Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Mimstry of Agriculture, Govt. of India,
New Delhi, 2003

Table: 2.7

Relative Performance of Pulses in India (1950-51 to 2002-03)

Year Ratio of Ratio of Pulses Ratio of % of Irrigated Area to

Pulses Area Production to Pulses yield Cropped Area
to that of that of to that of Foodgrains Pulses
Foodgrains Foodgrains Foodgrains
1950-51 0.20 0.17 0.84 18.1 9.9

1960-61 0.20 0.15 0.75 19.1 8.0

1964-65 0.20 0.15 0.68 20.2 9.2

1970-71 0.18 0.11 0.60 24.1 8.8

1980-81 0.18 0.08 0.46 29.7 9.0

1990-91 0.19 0.08 0.41 35.1 10.5

1999-00 0.17 0.06 0.33 43.9 16.1

2001-02 0.18 0.06 0.35 NA NA

2002-03 0.19 0.06 0.33 NA NA
Source: Ibid

43
Important Pulse Crops

India grows around dozen varieties of pulses, which are cultivated in

rabi and kharif seasons (Table 2.8). The most important crop of gram is a
rabi crop and contributed 31.82 per cent of area and 42.07 per cent to all
India production during 1997-98. The second ranking pulse crop, arhar is
primarily grown in kharif and constituted 15.42 per cent of area and 17.44
per cent of production. These two together accounted for nearly 47 per
cent of the area and around 60 per cent of the total production of pulses.
The next important pulses are moong and urad, which are cultivated in
rabi as well as in kharif seasons. Recently, growing of moong in summer
has picked up. Although, they accounted for 26 per cent of area but their
share in production was nearly 18 per cent due to very low yields. Massar
contributed around 6 per cent to area as well as to production. Besides,
kulthi, pea, khesari and moth are also grown and their shares in total pulse
area were 4.59 per cent, 3.39 per cent, 3.92 per cent and 5.72 per cent
respectively. Their corresponding contribution in the production of total
pulses was 3.00 per cent, 5.23 per cent, 3.04 per cent and 2.22 per cent
respectively. All these minor crops together accounted for sizeable area
but their contribution in production does not match due to very low
productivity except pea, which has exhibited the highest yield rate among
the pulse crops. The other minor pulse crops of India include labia,
rajmash etc, which occupied around 3 per cent area but contributed
around 2 per cent to production. It is interesting to note that soyabean
which occupies an important position in the agriculture of many other
countries in the world is not widely cultivated as pulse in India. This is also
the highest yielding pulse available in the world today. Besides, it contains
highest protein content apart from being a source of edible oils. Although,
soyabean should be counted among pulses, it is documented as oilseed in
government publications on account of its high utility for edible oils

44
extraction in India. For this reason, soyabean is excluded from the
analysis.
The large number of pulse crops has several implications. First, it
puts serious limit to single pulse based growth strategy for promotion of
production in the country. In view of limited resources available to pulses
as a group for research and development, this implies spreading the
resources too thinly to various crops and in turn making the effort
inconsequential. This may explain the absence of any major thrust in
research on pulses, which is responsible for stagnation in production.
Apparently, diversity in the number of pulse crops is very high in
India. Furthermore, their spatial distribution also varied (Table 2.9). The
attention may be drawn to the three largest growing states of each pulse
crop along with their share in production. It appeared that gram, urad,
massar, pea and moth are region specific in nature because a single state
grows more than 40 per cent of all India production. Other pulse crops are
strictly not region specific in the sense that a cluster of two or three states
accounts for bulk of the country's production. This tendency was the
strongest for moth because Rajasthan alone grew 89.79 per cent of all
India production. Similarly, Uttar Pradesh grew 77.39 per cent of pea. This
concentration of spatial distribution has policy implications. It suggests that
there is a great need. for region-oriented focus in pulse development
programmes in India.

Marketed Surplus of Important Pulse Crops

It is generally contended that pulses are subsistence crops and

therefore, marketed surplus of pulses is very low and insignificant. But,
latest available data given in Table 2.10 refute this· belief. The weighted
average of marketed surplus of each pulse crop in India was a minimum of
74.7 per cent of total production. The marketed surplus of gram was above
80 per cent of production in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

45
 Table: 2.8

Important Pulse Crops in India (1997-98)

Area in Thousand Hectares

Production in Thousand Tonnes
Y"le ld - Ki.QS/H a.
Crop Area Per cent Production Per cent Share Yield
Share

Gram 7168 31.82 5557 42.07 775

Arhar 3471 15.42 2304 17.44 663
Urad 2920 12.96 1341 10.15 459
Moong 2997 13.30 1096 8.30 365
Massar 1304 5.79 827 6.26 634
Kulthi 1034 4.59 396 3.00 383
Pea 763 3.39 691 5.23 905
Khesari 883 3.92 401 3.04 455
Moth 1290 5.72 293 2.22 227
Minor 692 3.07 302 2.29 580
Pulses

Total 22525 100.00 13208 100.00 586

Source: Area and Production of Principal Crops in India, Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture,
Government of India, New Delhi, 1999.

46
 Figure-I

Share of Important Pulses in Area

Arhar

Figure-II

Share of Important Pulses in Production

Kulthi

47
 Table: 2.9

Three Largest Pulse Producing States in India during 1997-98

Crop States

Gram Madhya Pradesh (47.75), Uttar Pradesh (15.75), Rajasthan (14.04)

Arhar Maharashtra (33.48), Uttar Pradesh (19.57), Madhya Pradesh (12.17)

Moong Maharashtra (20.29), Rajasthan (17.01), Andhra Pradesh (12.72)

Urad Maharashtra (42.70), Madhya Pradesh (40.79), Andhra Pradesh (36.58)

Massar Uttar Pradesh (49.46), Madhya Pradesh (24.73), Bihar (15.05)

Pea Uttar Pradesh (77.39), Madhya Pradesh (8.98), Rajasthan (3.09)

Kulthi Karnataka (36.90), Andhra Pradesh (9.77), Madhya Pradesh (9.95)

Moth Rajasthan (89.79), Maharashtra (8.83), Gujarat (2.40)

Total Madhya Pradesh (22.90), Uttar Pradesh (18.12), Maharashtra ( 14.25)

Source: Area and Production of Principal Crops, Directorate of Economics & Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture,
Government of India, New Delhi, 1999.

48
 Table: 2.10

Marketed Surplus of Important Pulses in India (2001-02)

Crop Three Important States All India

Weighted

Average

Gram Madhya Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Rajasthan 81.2

(87.4) (64.7) (81.4)

Arhar Madhya Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Maharashtra 77.2

(58.5) (79.3) (82.1)

Moong Andhra Pradesh Rajasthan Maharashtra 74.7

(89.2) (74.6) (78.9)

Urad Andhra Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Maharashtra 85.5

(90.9) (96.4) (88.6)

Massar Madhya Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Bihar 89.9

(85.7) (95.7) (77.5)

Source : Agricultural Statistics at a Glance, Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture, Government
of India, New Delhi, 2003

Note: Brackets show percentage of Production as marketed Surplus based on CACP data.

49
It was however, 64.7 per cent in Uttar Pradesh. It could be due to higher
requirement for home consumption. Similarly, marketed surplus of moong,
urad and massar was also on a higher side. Surprisingly, it was found
lowest in case of arhar in Madhya Pradesh, whereas it has exceeded 75
per cent in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. Arhar in Madhya Pradesh the
only exception in this regard as it shows the lowest marketed surplus of
58.5 per cent of production. In brief, overall results of marketed surplus of
pulses in major producing states are indicative of lower proportion devoted
to self consumption and higher priority accorded to marketing of the
produce for commercial gains.

Section - Ill: Status of India in World Pulse Production and Trade

Share of India in World Pulse Production

India accounted for 30.32 per cent of pulse area and 21.11 per cent
of pulse production in the world during the year 2003. About 55 per cent of
the total global chickpea and 36 per cent of lentil area fall in India with
corresponding production of 58 and 42 per cent respectively. The other
major pulse producing countries are China (9.21 per cent), Brazil (5.89 per
cent) and Canada (5.43 per cent).
It may be observed from Table 2.11 that yield variations among the
pulse producing countries are very high. The average yield of pulses in the
world was 793 kgs/hat.in the year 2003. The countries with higher yield
included France (4146 kgs./ha.), USA, (1803 kgs./ha.), China (1507
kgs.ha.), Canada (1506 kgs/ha.), Argentina (1237 kgs/ha.) and Australia
(1209 kgs./ha). On the other' hand, countries such as Niger, Nigeria,
Mexico, Brazil, Myanmar and Pakistan are lagging far behind these
countries due to lower yield rates. Unfortunately, India ranks twelfth
despite having the largest share of world area under pulses.

50
Exports and Imports of Pulses

India has been exporting pulses for a long period but quantity exported
has been less than one per cent of total production. In physical terms,
quantity of pulses exported from India amounted to 31000 tonnes in 1966-67,
4000 tonnes in 1967-68, 26000 tonnes in 1968-69, 41000 tonnes in 1969-70,
30000 tonnes in 1970-71, 22000 tonnes in 1971-72, 15000 tonnes in 1972-73
and 8000 tonnes in 1973-74 (National Commission on Agriculture 1976).
Recently, it has reached to 144.37 thousand tonnes valued at Rs. 337.23
crore in 2002-03.
India has been importing pulses since the early 1980s. This was due to
domestic demandfor essential pulses of mass consumption was rising faster
than increase in production. The imports of pulses kept on rising because
country's self sufficiency level has been considerably eroded over the past
two decades. Currently, India imports more than 15 per cent of domestic
production. It was observed that demand and production gap per year is
around five million tonnes. But, level of actual imports is far less. The annual
imports had averaged around two million tonnes in the recent years. In 2001-
02, country imported nearly more than 2 million tonnes of pulses. It seems
that large imports are inevitable in the current production scenario because
gap between demand and supply will continue to be quite wide in view of
prolonged stagnation in production of pulses.
Once an exporter of pulses, India is presently the largest importer of
pulses in the world. Pulses are regularly imported as domestic production is
short of domestic demand. The crisis is gradually increasing due to growth in
population and introduction of protein based food industries. There is a need
to check import due to associated problems like pulses being integral item of
food for the Indians, scarce availability of pulses in the world market and fear
of jacking up prices owing to high demand by India. Given the domestic
compulsions, India should develop indigenous base to fulfill the demand and
supply gap. A limited quantity can always be imported at the world price.

51
 Table: 2.11

Area, Production and Yield of Total Pulses in Important Producing

Countries in the World {2003)

Area: '000 Hectare

Production: '000 MT
Yie ld : K_gs. /H a.
Country Area Percentage Production Percentage Yield Rank
Share Share
Niger 3557 4.98 421 0.74 119 15
Nigeria 5120 7.18 2250 3.98 439 14
Canada 2036 2.86 3067 5.43 1506 4
Mexico 2123 2.98 1752 3.10 825 9
Brazil 4148 5.82 3328 5.89 802 10
China 3456 4.85 5208 9.21 1507 3
India 21615 30.32 11933 21.11 552 12
Pakistan 2289 3.21 1064 1.88 465 13
Turkey 1602 2.25 1577 2.79 984 7
France 467 0.66 1935 3.42 4146 1
Australia 2126 2.98 2570 4.55 1209 6
Myanmar· 3143 4.40 2792 4.94 888 8
USA 780 1.09 1406 2.49 1803 2
Bangladesh 453 0.64 350 0.62 772 11
Argentina 224 0.31 277 0.49 1237 "5
World* 71280 100.00 56520 100.00 793
* Includes minor Producing countries.

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Production Year Book, Rome, Vol. 57; 2003

Note : Brackets show Percentage of World in Area and Production, rank in yield.

52
 Table: 2.12

Export and Import of Pulses in India {1980-81 to 2002-03)

Quantity : '000 Tonnes

Value : Rs. in Crores
Unit Value : Rs. Per Unit/kg.

Year Exports Imports

Quantity Value Per Unit Quantity Value Per Unit

Price Price
1980-81 1.09 0.35 3.21 172.96 29.76 1.72

1985-86 0.57 0.46 8.07 431.44 189.06 4.38

1990-91 15.11 17.93 11.87 1273.43 481.17 3.78

1994-95 50.71 90.41 17.83 554.08 593.37 10.71

2000-01 244.08 537.08 22.00 349.84 498.47 14.25

2001-02 161.64 369.13 22.84 2217.82 3160.16 14.25

2002-03 144.37 337.23 23.35 1992.29 2737.05 13.73

Source: Foreign Trade Statistics, Ministry of Commerce reproduced in the reports of the Commission for Agricultural Cost
and Prices, Government of India, New Delhi, 1997-98 & 2003.

53
Section- IV: Pulses Developmental Strategies during Plans

The poor performance of pulse production in India (Table 2.6) may

be attributed to the neglect of pulse crops in the policy for almost one and
a half decades after independence. Like wheat and rice crops, there were
no specific programmes of pulses development till the Second Five-Year
Plan. After observing the continuous decline in the output of pulses and
yield per hectare, an All-India Coordinated Pulse Research Project
(AICPRP) was initiated in 1965 during the Third Five Year Plan to
undertake a nation wide research effort on pulses with the headquarters at
the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) along with regional
Centres and four sub Centres. A Pulse Development Directorate was
established in 1970. A centrally sponsored scheme for increasing
production of pulses was initiated in 30 potential districts of the country in
1972-73. The strategy adopted to increase production included seed
multiplication ,and supply of seeds of short duration or improved varieties
at subsidized rates, demonstration of improved pulse production practices
and supply of plant protection chemicals and equipment at the subsidized
rates. But, between 1969-70 and 1973-74, there was no increase in pulse
production; rather it decreased from 11.69 million tonnes in 1969-70 to
10.01 million tonnes in 1973-74. The yield per hectare also registered a
continuous decrease during this period. Thus, there was no immediate
impact of the scheme on the production of pulses. May be that these
efforts averted the rapid decreases which could have occurred in the
absence of this scheme.
The Fifth Five Y~ar Plan targeted to increase pulse production by
2.5 million tonnes. Out of this, increase of 0.75 million tonnes was to be
achieved by attracting an additional area of 1.5 million hectares under
pulses with an assumed production level of 500 kg. per hectare on this
additional area. It was planned to achieve remaining 1.75 million tonnes
by yield improvement of 250 kg. per hectare through the adoption of

54
improved package of practices on 7.00 million hectares. During this plan, ·
Pulse Development Scheme was extended to 50 districts of the country.
The efforts did not succeed this time also. The Fifth Five Year Plan closed
a year earlier in 1977-78. By then, production of pulses reached a level of
11.97 million tonnes, though higher than actual production level of 10.01
million tonnes in 1974-75 but only marginally higher than base level
production (11.5 million tonnes) assumed by the planners. There was
some improvement both in area as well as in yield during this plan.
In the Sixth Five Year Plan (1978-83), it was proposed to increase
production of pulses to a level of 15 million tonnes ·by 1982-83. The
emphasis proposed was both on area expansion as well as yield increase.
But, original Sixth Plan was abandoned and revised from April 1, 1980.
Assuming a base level production of 11.61 million tonnes in 1980-81,
target in the Sixth Five Year Plan was to increase pulse production to a
level of 15.50 million tonnes. This proposed increase of 3.89 million tonnes
was sub divided crop-wise as gram (1.20 million tonnes), summer moong
(1.20 million tonnes), arhar ~1.00 miilion tonnes) and urad and others (0.49
million tonnes). The major strategy for achieving this goal has been set out
as (i) to bring an additional area of 3.5 million hectares under these crops;
and (ii) adoption of package programme over an area of 6.3 million
hectares in gram, arhar and moong.
By the late eighties, above-mentioned programmes failed to
increase anticipated efficiency in pulse production. Realizing this, pulses
were brought- under the Technology Mission in the year 1990. The
National Pulses Development Project (NPDP) under the guidance of
"Technology Mission" was launched with the main objective of increasing
the production of pulses through transfer of improved ·crop production
technology to the farmers' fields in respect of the major pulse crops. At
present, National Pulses Development Programme is being implemented
in more than two hundred pulse-producing districts of India. The focus and
thrust of NPDP has been a district oriented approach to reach an

55
increased level of productivity and production within a time frame by
implementing . a two-pronged strategy, viz, area expansion and yield
improvement. These programmes also continued in the Eighth (1992:.93 to
1996-97) and Ninth Plan (1997 -2002). In the Tenth Plan (2002-07),
Technology Mission is still operational but recently four crops namely;
oilseeds, pulses, oil palm and maize are clubbed together under the
scheme known as ISOPAM (Integrated Scheme of Oilseeds, Pulses, Oil
palm and Maize). The set target of 16 million tonnes still remains elusive
despite the implementation of these programmes.
In addition to special programmes for increasing pulse production in
India, the Government announces minimum support prices (MSPs) in case
of gram, arhar, moong, urad and massar each year. Massar has been
recently included in the scheme. The MSPs are meant to enable the
producers to pursue their efforts with the assurance that the prices of the
produce would not be allowed to fall below the level fixed by the
Government. These prices are expected to cover cost of production and
reasonable profits. The MSPs fixed by the Government for the pulses are
given in Table 2.14. It may be observed that MSPs for pulses have been
rising continuously for each of the covered pulses since 1981. The
compound growth rates of minimum support prices of gram, arhar,
moong/urad are estimated 9. 74, 8.94 and 8. 73 per cent per annum
respectively between 1980-81 and 2003-04. These growth rates appeared
to be quite impressive. But, in reality, the MSPs for pulses have been only
notional and ineffective because pulses are not procured. In case of falling
market prices, the NAFED procures a very limited quantity under the price
support scheme and commercial purchases.

56
 Table: 2.13
Major Strategies/Programmes Introduced for Pulses Development during
Plans
Third Plan (1961-62 to 1965-66)
1. All india Coordinated Research
Programme was initiated.
2. Breeding of suitable varieties for fitting
in multiple cropping.
3. Breeding of suitable varieties of urad for
mixed cropping in North India.
4. Breeding of diseases resistant varieties.
Fifth Plan (1974-75 to 1978-79)
1.1PDP continued and further intensified.
2. Research programme on pulses stepped
up through All India Coordinated
Research Programme
3. Breeding of varieties suitable as catch
crops for replacing monsoon fallows.
4. Standardization of techniques for
fertilizer application.
5. Development of pest control schedules
and suitable bacterial culture.
6. Development of more effective
agron<;>mic practices.
7. Special importance on processing of
pulses and modernization of dal milling
industry.
57
Fourth Plan (1.969-70 to 1973-74)
1. "Intensive Pulses District Programme"
(I PDP) was initiated.
2. Adoption of package of practices
including use of improved seeds,
phosphatic fertilizers, rhizobia! culture
and plant protection campaigns.
3. Minikit distribution
4. Extension of pulse area by catch
cropping, inter-cropping and mixed
cropping with cereals, millets, cotton,
groundnut and sugarcane etc.
Sixth Plan (1980-81 to 1984-85)
1. Introduction of pulse crops in irrigated
farming.
2. Bringing additional area under short
duration varieties of urad, moong etc., in
rice fallows by utilizing the residual
moisture in rabi season and in summer
season with irrigation after oilseeds,
sugarcane, potato and wheat.
3. Multiplication and use of improved pulse
seeds.
4. Use of Phosphatic fertilizers and
rhizobia! culture.
5. Improved post harvest technology.
6. Organization of "pulse crop village" in
various blocks both in irrigated and
rainfed areas.
 Seventh Plan (1985-86 to 1989-90)
1. Introduction of Pulses in irrigated
farming.
2. Bringing additional area under short
duration varieties of moong and urad in
rice fallows in the rabi season and as a
summer crop where irrigation facilities
are available.
3. Inter-cropping of arhar, moong and urad
with other crops.
4. Multiplication and use of improved
seeds.
5. Adoption of plant protection measures.
6. Use of fertilizers and rhizobia! culture.
7. Remunerative price relative to
competing crops.
8. Centrally sponsored National Pulses
Development Programme (NPDP)
Source: Third·to Tenth Five- Year Plan documents, Planning Commission, GO/, New Delhi.
58
Eighth Plan (1992-93 to 1996-97)
1. Many programmes introduced in the
Seventh Plan were allowed to continue
in the Eighth Plan.
2. Pulse crops brought under Technology
Mission in 1990-91.
3. Pulse production was intensified by
taking up NPDP and the special food
grain production programme on pulses.
Ninth Plan (1997 to 2002)
1. Programmes launched in the Eight Plan
were allowed to continue during Ninth
I
Plan.
2. Technology Mission was in operation.
Tenth Plan (2002-2007)
The same as in Ninth Plan
 Pulses do not have any procurement system like wheat and rice
except in emergency when the National Agricultural Cooperative
Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) procures pulses in small quantity.
The prices of arhar, moong and urad during 2000-01 and. 2001-02 were
ruling below the MSP during the peak arrival months. NAFED procured a
small quantity of total production. It was 98 tonnes of arhar at an average
price Rs. 1350 per qtl. However, NAFED intervened in only three markets
of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Delhi for price support even though
prices were falling below the MSP in other markets of Uttar Pradesh,
Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. It implies that NAFED's intervention is
very limited in comparison to requirement.
In addition, NAFED also makes commercial purchases. It was
18151 tonnes of gram, 5794 tonnes of massar, 1920 tonnes of arhar, 1886
tonnes of moong and 31 tonnes of urad at an average price of Rs.1413,
Rs.1572, Rs.1479, Rs.1723 and Rs.1935 per qtl respectively. Commercial
purchases were mad.e during 2001-02 also. But, looking at the support
required by the pulse growers, these interventions are like peanuts and
hardly, make any difference to overall situation (Table 2.15).
Having analyzed the strategy for promotion of pulses in India, it is
essential to examine the achievement of fixed targets for pulse production
in India. It may be noticed (Table 2.16) that the achievement of pulse
production in India during the recent past was below the set targets. There
is not a single year when target was fully achieved. The achievement
ranged between 70.68 per cent in 2002-03 and 96.19 per cent in 1998-99.
The achievement of targets was found better in 1998-99, 1999-2000 and
2001-02. In brief, overall scenario of pulse production in India calls for a
deeper probe and solutions since the country could not achieve even the
modest target of 16 million tonnes with ongoing strategy for pulse
development.

59
 Table: 2.14

Minimum Support Prices of Pulses (1980-81 to 2003-04)

{Rs/Qtl)
Year Gram Arhar Moong/Urad Massar

1980-81 165 190 200 -

1990-91 450 480 480 -
1991-92 500 550 550 -
1992-93 600 600 600 -
1993-94 640 700 700 -
1994-95 670 760 760 -
1995-96 700 800 800 -
1996-97 740 840 840 -
1997-98 815 900 900 -
1998-99· 895 960 960 -
1999-00 1015 1105 1105 -
2000-01 1100 1200 1200 -
2001-02 1200 1320 1320 1200

2002-03* 1220+5*· 1320+5* 1330+5* 1300

2003-04 1400 1360 1370 1500

CGR 1980-81 9.74 8.94 8.73 -

& 2003-04 '
• Special Drought Relief Price (Rs. 5 extra),

Source: Agricultural Statistics at a Glance, Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture,
Government of India, New Delhi, 2004.

60
 Table: 2.15

Procurement of Pulses by NAFED Under Price Support Scheme and

Commercial Purchases 2000-01 and 2001-02

2000-01 2001-02
Commodit Quantity Value Price Per Quantity Valu Price Per
y Qtl. e Qtl.
Under Price Support Scheme

Gram - - - - - -
Arhar 98 13.23 1350 3838 571 1487

Moong - - - - - -
Urad - - - - - -
Massar - - - - - -
Under Commercial Purchases

Gram 18151 2564 1413 26202 4090 1561

Arhar 1920 284 1479 3388 494 1458

Moong 1886 325 1723 5965 1207 2023

Urad 31 6 1935 5579 1055 1891

Massar 5794 910 1572 2421 396 1637

Source: Reports of The Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices, Ministry of Agriculture, GO/. New
Delhi, 2003

Table: 2.16

Target and Achievement of Pulse Production during

Ninth Five-Year Plan (1997-98 to 2001-02)

Year Target Achievement

1997-98 15.00 12.97 (86.47)*
1998-99 15.50 14.91 (96.19)
1999-00 15.50 13.41 (86.52)
2000-01 15.00 11.07 (73.80)
2001~02 15.00 13.37 (89.13)
IXth Plan 76.00 65.55 (86.25)
2002-03 16.00 11.31 (70.69)
* Brackets show Percentage of targets achieved.

Source: Agricultural Statistics at a Glance, Directorate of Economics and Statistics,

Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India, New Delhi, 2003

61