NITI Aayog releases report on “Strategies and Pathways for Accelerating Growth in Pulses towards the Goal of Atmanirbharta”

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In Summary

India, the largest pulse producer and consumer, faces challenges like low yields and reduced sowing areas; Strategies and Roadmap for Self-Sufficiency include expanding cultivation, improving productivity, developing resilient varieties, and enhancing seed access.

In Summary

India is the largest producer (~28% of global output) and consumer of pulses in the world.

Strategic Importance of Pulses for India: Nutritional Security (budget-friendly source of plant-based protein), Sustainable Development (fixes nitrogen, enhancing soil fertility, mitigating GHG emissions).

Challenges in India’s Pulse Production

Low Productivity and Yield Gap: India's average pulse yield is 0.740 tonnes per hectare (t/ha), which is significantly lower than the global average of 0.969 t/ha.
Shift to more Profitable Crops: Farmers are increasingly shifting to more profitable crops such as banana, cotton, sugarcane, and soybean, which offer higher returns and often have shorter cultivation periods.
Declining Sowing Area: The pulses sowing area has gradually reduced by 10.5% (from 2021-22 to 2023-24), with production declining by 11.2% in two years.
Rainfall dependency: Nearly 80% of pulse-growing areas are rainfed, making cultivation highly vulnerable to erratic weather conditions.

Strategies and Roadmap for Self-Sufficiency

Horizontal Expansion: Increase area under pulses by using rice fallow lands, intercropping with crops like sugarcane, restructuring rice–wheat systems, and applying the district-wise quadrant strategy for targeted interventions.
- Quadrant Strategy: Employing a district-wise four-quadrant approach (High Area-High Yield, High Area-Low Yield, Low Area-High Yield, and Low Area-Low Yield) helps categorize districts for targeted interventions.
Vertical Expansion: Enhance productivity through improved seed varieties, modern farming machinery, optimal agronomic practices, and better stress management (abiotic & biotic).
Varietal Development: Develop climate-resilient, short-duration, nutrient-rich, pest- and disease-resistant, and machine-harvestable varieties using advanced breeding and genomics.
Seed Quality & Access: Establish “One Block–One Seed Village” hubs via FPOs to ensure availability of high-quality seeds, treatment kits, and end-to-end traceability, supported by seed subsidies.