look news india
The increase in the prices of pulses before the Lok Sabha elections to be held in the next one and a half month has increased the problems of the government. After the biggest jump in the prices of arhar dal, on Tuesday 20 February 2024, the government has held a big meeting with the stakeholders related to the dal industry. In the meeting chaired by Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh, the government expressed concern over the hoarding of pulses and advised traders not to indulge in profiteering and said that if they do so, the government can take strict action.
Increase in price of pulses cannot be tolerated
Importers of pulses were also involved in this meeting held with the Consumer Affairs Secretary. The Consumer Affairs Secretary has asked traders to ensure that prices do not increase in the retail market. The stock of pulses available in the country was reviewed in the meeting. It was said in the meeting that the pulses which have been imported are not being released in the market, due to which the prices are increasing. The government warned traders that pulses were being stockpiled, causing prices to rise. He said that the government will not take hoardings at all. The Consumer Affairs Secretary has asked traders to provide pulses to consumers at fair prices.
Beans are being stored in these countries
In the meeting, the importers told the government that the countries from which pulses are imported into India. Beans are kept there. Due to which import of pulses is becoming expensive. Import of pigeon pea has been affected by a dispute between two traders from Mozambique. The government has decided to take up this matter with those countries. In the meeting, Rohit Kumar Singh said that no country can take advantage of India's compulsion to import pulses. In the meeting, the government has indicated that it can also fix the upper limit of pulses imported into the country.
Prices of pulses are troubling
It is also clear from the retail inflation rate data released for January 2024 that the prices of pulses are increasing in the country. According to statistics ministry data, the inflation rate of pulses and allied products in January 2024 was 19.54 percent, while the inflation rate of pulses in January 2023 was 4.27 percent. According to data from the Price Monitoring Division of the Department of Consumer Affairs, the average price of arhar dal was Rs 148.77 per kg on February 20, 2024, while it was Rs 112.14 per kg a year ago on February 20, 2023. The prices of arhar dal have increased by 32.66 percent in one year. The current average price of urad dal is Rs 123.26 per kg, while a year ago it was Rs 107.1 per kg. That means an increase of 13.11 percent has been seen in the average price of urad dal.
