The production of chana (gram), a key pulse variety, is likely to decline by around 10-15% from the last year output of 13.5 million tonne (MT) because of early maturity due to above normal temperature which prevailed in key growing states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat last month.
Trade sources said that while the harvesting of chana on a large scale is expected to begin by the end of this month, there are reports of early maturity of the crop because of record temperature witnessed last month.
In February, monthly average maximum temperatures across the country were the highest since 1901.
The agriculture ministry, in its second advance estimate of foodgrains production for 2022-23 crop year (July-June), has estimated chana production at a record 13.6 MT.
Officials said that they are still assessing the ground report on chana production prospects.
The mandi prices of chana, from the early harvest at present, is ruling at around `4,600/quintal against the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of `5,335/quintal for 2023-24 marketing season.
“Because of lower crop prospects, the mandi prices are expected to go up by `200/quintal to `300/quintal from the current level in the next couple of weeks,” a trader from Gujarat told FE.
The prices are expected to rule around MSP as the government holds around 1.6 MT of chana through the farmers cooperative Nafed.
“Warm climate at the time of seeding and now high temperatures at the time of harvest may play a vital role in coming days which will ascertain yield prospects for this year’s crop,” Harsha Rai of Mayur Global Corporation, an agri-business firm, said.
Inflation in chana has been consistently in the negative zone for last many months because of bumper output and surplus stocks held with Nafed.
Inflation in chana declined by 1.81% in January, 2023.
“Nafed is consistently selling its chana stock in the open market since the last many months which has kept the prices of the pulses variety under check,” Nitin Kalantri, managing director, Kalantry Food Products, a Latur, Maharashtra-based processor, said.
Because of record chana production of 13.75 MT in the 2021-22 crop year (July-June), Nafed procured more than 2.5 MT of pulses in the 2022-23 (April-June) season under the price support scheme, aimed at providing minimum support price (MSP) to farmers.
The pulses variety has a share of close to 50% in the country’s production of 27.69 MT in the 2021-22 crop year (July-June).
At present, Nafed has 2.37 MT, which is at par with the government’s buffer stock norm.
Of this, the chana stock is more than 1.6 MT. However, in the case of other varieties of pulses, because of lower procurement, the government’s stocks are smaller — moong (0.5 MT), urad (0.07 MT) and tur (0.05 MT) at present.
Meanwhile, Nafed will be commencing procurement of pulses in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.