Encourage pulses
Apropos of the column “Dismantle the MSP regime” (December 19), the author, Tejinder Narang hits the nail right on the head: getting rid of MSP is correct policy. The main contention is that India’s MSP policy is an ascending-road model with no scope for downside correction. The time has come to stop the practice of fixing MSP for wheat and rice; however, for pulses, it needs further encouragement and support. The agricultural policies pertaining to pulses are patently unfair. The net availability of pulses has come down from 70.1g/day/person in 1951 to 31 g/day/person 2008 as against the recommended 65 grams. The productivity of pulses in India is low at 694 kg/ha, and to make pulses production internationally competitive, the average yield levels need to be increased to at least 1 tonne/ha. In an otherwise gloomy scenario, Andhra Pradesh is a beacon of hope—the state’s yield of chickpea increased from 393 kg/ha to 1,375 kg/ha between 1987 and 2011, while the area under pulse cultivation increased from 0.52 lakh ha to 5.42 lakh ha. This led to a production increase from 19,900 tonness to 7,30,700 tonnes in the same period. This has to be replicated in other states to make protein from pulses affordable to the common man and improve nutrition levels in terms of protein intake.
MM Gurbaxani
Bangalore
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