Pulses prices jump up to 20%; tur, urad return to MSP levels
The round led the increase, rising nearly 20%, due to exchange rate pressures and supply tightness, as well as concerns about lower crop production in India and other producing countries. Chana and urad prices increased by around 9% and 11% in January.
Notably, while tur and urad have climbed to minimum support price (MSP) levels after over a year, chana continues to remain below MSP and last year’s prices. Indian Pulses and Grains Association (IPGA) President Bimal Kothari said that the new chana prices from February-end may put more pressure on chana prices, but Tur and urad are likely to remain firm.
“Prolonged rains delayed the harvest of kharif and rabi pulses, which affected the availability of tur and chana in the short term,” Kothari said. “Kharif urad production is also lower than expected.”
Pulse prices have entered a downward trend since January 2024.
Analysis of industry data showed that ex-factory prices of top quality tur dal at Akola in Maharashtra rose 23% to ₹129/kg in January from ₹105 per kg in the previous month, while the annual increase was 11%.
According to IPGA, tour prices are trending upward due to strong global price cues, weak rupee, limited sales by farmers, steady purchases by factories and low domestic crop forecasts in key producing regions. MSP-backed purchases during the peak arrival period also continued to support market sentiment and prices. In Jalgaon, the ex-factory price of urad dal has increased by 20% to ₹82/kg in a month. However, the increase compared to last year is 6 percent. The ex-factory price of chana dal in Jaipur increased by 9.7 percent in a month to Rs 68/kg. However, chana prices are still around 2% lower than last year.
India depends on imports of tur from Myanmar and Africa, urad from Myanmar and Brazil, chana from Australia and lentils, and yellow peas from Canada and the Black Sea region.
