Worsening diplomatic ties between India and Canada; the largest supplier of pulses to the country in the previous financial year, are unlikely to make the commodity more expensive for consumers, said traders and industry executives.Ample imported stocks of yellow peas, increase in domestic production of pulses and availability of yellow peas and lentils from Russia and Australia will help keep prices stable, they said.Although yellow peas are consumed in households only in a few states in eastern India, they are used as a substitute for chana, tur, moong and expensive dals in out-of-home consumption food items. By allowing duty-free imports of yellow peas without quantitative restrictions, the Indian government sought to increase the overall supply of pulses in the country, thus reducing demand pressure on the expensive pulses, which were in short supply, according to the executives. “We have a stock of 9 lakh tonnes of yellow peas now and another 7 lakh tonnes are in transit. And if the tension escalates, India will import yellow peas from Russia and more lentils from Australia,” said Bimal Kothari, chairman, India Pulses and Grains Association (IPGA).He said that Canada accounts for 60% of the yellow peas import, with Russia contributing the remaining 40%. India had stopped importing yellow peas after it became self-sufficient in production of chana, as yellow peas were used as a substitute for chana. However, the ban on imports was lifted after five and a half years in December 2023 to tame the inflation in pulses before the general election. Initially opened for three months, the import window was extended twice to allow imports till December 2024. “We are using yellow peas as a substitute of all the expensive pulses,” said Kothari.The Indian pulses industry and trade has been demanding a ban on yellow pea imports. The prices of most of the pulses are on a decline as the kharif pulses cultivation has been robust due to good monsoon. Between December 2023 and August this year, India imported 2.22 million tonnes of yellow peas, while another 700,000 tonnes under various phases of shipment. According to trade estimates, India may import 3.2-3.3 million tonnes of yellow peas till December. The annual pulses consumption in the country is about 32 million tonnes, of which nearly 4.72 million tonnes are imported.Prices of African tur have fallen to Rs 70 per kg in October, down 39% from Rs 115 per kg in July, while Chana prices have fallen to Rs 75 per kg from Rs 81 per kg a fortnight ago.As the tensions between the two countries have not yet led to trade sanctions, the importers are keenly observing the evolving situation. “Although there would not be any major impact on India in case the Canadian imports stop, we are in wait and watch mode,” said Ajay Goyal, CEO, Goyal International. Lentils may get costlierIn case India stops getting masoor (lentils) from Canada, there could be a slight impact on prices, according to industry executives. “We need 8-9 lakh tonnes of lentils. We can always get it from Australia. But as their crop is somewhat less, lentil prices may get affected marginally,” said Kothari.
Source link
Follow Us:
https://facebook.com/gagab2b
https://youtube.com/gagab2b
https://gagab2b.com
