Govt committed to procure pulses at MSP to boost production: Agri minister

In a bid to boost domestic production and reduce imports, the Centre has committed to procuring tur, urad, and masur at Minimum Support Prices (MSP), Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Friday.

The move aims to encourage crop diversification and achieve self-sufficiency in pulse production by 2027.

Chairing a virtual meeting with state agriculture ministers, Chouhan highlighted the launch of the e-Samridhi portal through cooperatives NAFED and NCCF for farmer registration.

"We urge state governments to encourage more farmers to register on this portal to avail assured procurement," he said.

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