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| Photo Credit: Levin Raju

The government on June 21 imposed stock limits on tur and chana dals till September this year to check hoardings and control prices.

The Centre has issued an order imposing stock limits, which will be applicable to wholesalers, retailers, big chain retailers, millers and importers, an official statement said.

The move is aimed to “prevent hoarding and unscrupulous speculation, and also to improve affordability to the consumers in respect of tur and chana”.

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The Removal of Licensing Requirements, Stock Limits and Movement Restrictions on Specified Foodstuffs (Amendment) Order, 2024 has been issued with immediate effect from June 21, 2024.

Under this order, stock limits have been prescribed for tur and chana, including kabuli chana, until September 30, 2024, for all states and union territories.

Stock limits applicable to each of the pulse individually will be 200 tonnes for wholesalers; 5 tonnes for retailers; 5 tonnes at each retail outlet and 200 tonnes at the depot for big chain retailers; last 3 months of production or 25 per cent of annual installed capacity, whichever is higher, for the millers.

Importers are not to hold imported stock beyond 45 days from the date of customs clearance.

The respective legal entities have been asked to declare the stock position on the portal of the Department of Consumer Affairs.

“In case the stocks held by them are higher than the prescribed limits then, they shall bring the same to the prescribed stock limits by 12th July 2024,” the statement said.

The government said that the imposition of stock limits on tur and chana is a part of a slew of measures taken by it to crack down on prices of essential commodities.

The Department of Consumer Affairs has been closely monitoring the stock position of pulses through the stock disclosure portal.

The department had, in the first week of April 2024, communicated with state governments to enforce mandatory stock disclosure by all stockholding entities, which was followed up with visits to major pulses-producing states and trading hubs across the country from the last week of April to May 10, 2024.

Separate meetings with traders, stockists, dealers, importers, millers and bigchain retailers were also held to encourage and sensitise them for truthful disclosure of stocks and maintaining the affordability of pulses for the consumers.

The government had reduced import duty of 66 per cent on desi chana with effect from May 4, 2024, to augment the domestic production.

The duty reduction has facilitated imports and elicited higher sowing of chana in major producing countries.

As per a report, chana production in Australia is estimated to increase from 5 lakh tonnes in 2023-24 to 11 lakh tonnes in 2024-25 which is expected to be available from October 2024 onward.

“Sowing of Kharif pulses like tur and urad is expected to increase significantly in this season due to high price realisation by farmers and above-normal monsoon rains predicted by IMD,” the statement said.

Further, imports of the current year’s crop of tur from East African countries are expected to arrive from August 2024 onward.

“These factors are expected to help in bringing down the prices of Kharif pulses like tur and urad in the coming month. Arrival new crop of chana in Australia and its availability for import from October 2024 will help in maintaining the availability of chana to the consumers at affordable prices,” the government said.