To control skyrocketing prices of pulses, especially that of arhar or tur dal, the Indian government has gone into a firefighting mode, raiding hoarders, creating a buffer stock and imposing stock limits on traders as well as departmental stores.
The Centre said that states have seized over 35,000 tons of pulses from hoarders in 3,290 searches in the past three days.
With dal prices touching a record Rs. 210 per kg due to lower production in India and abroad, amendments have been made to the Essential Commodities Act to enable states to impose stock limits on pulses sourced from imports, held by exporters, large food processing units as well as large departmental retailers.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday called a meeting with ministers of states for the second time this week to discuss the rising price of pulses. After a meeting of the inter-ministerial group constituted by the PM to monitor the prices and availability of pulses, Jaitley blamed the states for doing nothing to discharge their responsibility in taking action against hoarders.
"It is only in the last 3-4 days, after the central government exerted pressure, that staggering quantities of 36,000 tons of dal have been recovered. Raids are still continuing," he told reporters after the meeting.
As much as 5,000 tons of imported pulses have already arrived and are being distributed to the states and another 3,000 tons are on the way, Jaitley added.
The rising pulse prices have now become a big poll issue in Bihar after reservation, Dadri lynching and cow-slaughter. The Modi government on Tuesday blamed the state government for not utilizing special central fund for price stabilization.
In a bid to increase the availability of pulses and bring down the prices, in Haryana MD, HADED has been directed to procure pulses from the market and sell it through its outlets.
In Uttarakhand, retail counters for pulses have been opened in Dehradun, Haridwar and Udhamsingh Nagar by Mandi samitis through which arhar dal is provided at Rs 145 per kg. Instructions have been given to all districts to provide pulses at the decided price through fair price shops.
In Delhi, imported tur dal (pigeon peas) is being sold at a subsidized rate of Rs. 120 per kg at nearly 500 outlets of Kendriya Bhandar and Safal.
Tamil Nadu has started picking up a lot quantities of imported pulses and Andhra Pradesh also expressed desire to lift the commodity for retail sale.
Jaitley expects prices to cool at retail level in the next few days after quantity seized in raids as well as those imported are released in the market.
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