The Central government of India has procured pulses and oilseeds worth Rs 24,503 crore or about 52.83 lakh tonnes so far under the price support scheme (PSS). Prices of pulses and oilseeds are under pressure owing to higher production. As per Agricultural Ministry, both pulses and oilseeds have been purchased under the PSS in a dozen States.
The highest procurement was done by Madhya Pradesh at 22.91 lakh tonnes, followed by Rajasthan, at 15.58 lakh tonnes and Gujarat, at 4.60 lakh tonnes till January 16 of this crop year (July 2018-June 2019). As per the data, procurement by Maharasthra was at 2.26 lakh tonnes, Haryana at 2.30 lakh tonnes, Karnataka at 1.64 lakh tonnes, Telangana at 1.07 lakh tonnes, Uttar Pradesh at 57,780 tonnes, Odisha at 9,655 tonnes, Tamil Nadu at 1,912 tonnes and West Bengal at 826 tonnes in the period.
The PSS works on the State governments’ request when prices fall below the minimum support price (MSP). The procurement is undertaken by nodal agencies such as Nafed at the MSP. Only fair average quality commodities are purchased.