Pulses and Oilseeds

 Introduction

India is a country whose significant population is mainly dependent on agricultural activities. Although it does not contribute a large part to the country’s GDP, a remarkable population needs this production. As there are variations in temperatures and rainfall, there are varieties in cropping production. It has pulses and Oil Seeds production with some other cropping patterns. As per the government policy of providing sufficient food grains to the people, there is a Minimum Support Price to procure these products. As the MSP is acting as an incentive, there is differentiation in productions. 

What are cropping patterns in India? 

Some places receive surplus rainfall in India, and some regions have less rainfall. Due to this regional distinction, various cropping patterns spread all over India. It practices the Rabi, Kharif, and Zaid season of the cropping system. Rabi is a winter crop that requires less rainfall like wheat, mustard, etc. Kharif is monsoon crops that require more rainfall like rice, sugarcane, etc. Zaid season mainly involves vegetables and fruits. 

The cereal productions in India with different legumes have made India a sufficient country in this field. The Oil Seeds production also has a unique contribution if fulfilling the nation’s demands. 

What is the status of pulses production in India? 

India is the largest producer, with 25% of the global production of pulses. It is also the largest consumer of pulses globally, with 27% of global consumption. There is also an import of pulses of nearly 14% to make it sufficient for the Indian population. The total production of Indian pulses accounts for about 20% of its total production. There was nearly 62% of the world’s total production in 2019-2020. There has been almost 100 tonnes of increase in pulses production in the last five to six years. It occupies a special place in Indian agriculture. Although pulses are grown in both the season of Rabi and Kharif, Rabi accounts for the highest production with 60% of total production. 

Grams account for the highest contribution among other pulses with nearly 40% of total production, followed by tur, urad, and moong. It is grown in a state with less than average rainfall, especially in the states like Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Madhya Pradesh. 

Since the golden period, pulses were of main priority, so their production was high. But with the advent of the green revolution, it was marginalized over rice and wheat. This led to decreased production as well as land degradation. The commercialisation of agriculture again led to increased production, and the status of lives increased. 

Benefits of Pulses: 

Pulses have high nutritional values with rich protein values. It is suitable for health and therefore suggested to have this insufficient manner. It plays a critical role in challenging the poverty and status of people. This is because people from poor backgrounds cannot fulfill their demands of pulses and legumes. Therefore, it is considered to determine the poverty state of people. A nitrogen fixation feature of pulses improves soil fertility and increases productivity. Thus, in short, it is beneficial not only for their health but also for the field. 

What are the different types of pulses production in India? 

Pulses are limited to the dry grains, which exclude the green crops for food. India has pulses like Bengal gram, peas, toor dal, green beans, chickpeas, urad, rajma, soybeans, moong, etc. With the production of this pulse, there is also some price support given to the pulses production. India provides Minimum Support prices (MSP) to the farmers to incentivise their production. It is provided by the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) to disseminate the benefits to the end-users. 

India is also a leading producer of Oil Seeds, and therefore it is essential to know about its production. 

What is the status of Oil Seeds production in India? 

Oil Seeds production is one of the critical determinants to gauge agricultural production in India. The policymakers understood it in the 90s itself, which led to the yellow revolution. But the outcomes of the yellow revolution did not sustain for a more extended period. Oil Seeds are mainly grown to obtain vegetables from the seeds, and it varies from seed to seed. Soybean produces 20% oil, whereas there is 40% oil production from sunflowers. 

India has a favorable environment to produce Oil Seeds, and therefore it can have a variety of production. It includes sesamum, castor seeds, groundnut, soybean, mustard, linseed, rapeseed, niger seed, safflower, and sunflower. India stands fifth in the world in Oil Seeds production, but still, it is the largest importer of vegetable oils. It imports nearly two-thirds of palm oil for its sufficiency. 

India is the second-largest producer of groundnut, with the third position in the production of rapeseeds. The significant Oil Seeds producers states are Gujarat, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka. It has marked a unique position in Oil Seeds production in the world. 

Challenges in growing Oil Seeds in India: 

The major challenge in growing Oil Seeds is that it is rain-fed, and therefore India is unable to reach the self-sufficiency level in this production. Indian lands are becoming fragmented with small landholdings and therefore aggravating the problem of growing Oil Seeds. Due to these reasons, there is a decrease in Oil Seeds production. 

Associated Intervention of government in increasing the Oil Seeds production: 

• National Food Security Mission: It is a policy to augment the availability of edible oils and reduce the dependence on imports
• National Mission on Oilseeds production: It was launched in 2014-15 and later merged with the National Food Security Mission, which aims to increase oil production in India
• There is a multi-pronged strategy for increasing the seed replacement ratio
• The government incentivizes the formation of farmer’s organizations which is beneficial for increasing Oil Seeds production

What are the steps required to increase Oil Seeds production? 

• Capacity building of farmers to increase seed replacement ratio and varietal replacement rate
• India can also choose the option of promoting rice fallow or potato areas for Oil Seeds
• Intercropping would be the best solution to increase the productivity as well as productivity of Oil Seeds
• Oil Seeds are generally grown in traditional areas, and we need to take essential steps to increase their reach in non-traditional areas
• Government or Self-Help groups can work for the promotion of Community based Oil extraction units in various regions
• There must be awareness among the consumers to make judicious use of oil 
• There must be some marketing reforms to have a better market in which the producers can effectively trade
• The policy of smart agriculture with some vital physical features of fertilizers, credit facilities, pesticides, and technical support to the consumers

Conclusion

India is leading in agricultural production, but there is a requirement for more attention to pulses and Oil Seeds. There are required government as well as community interventions to change the production level. If this collective effort is successful, India could soon become a self-sufficient nation in agricultural production.