Tur, chana prices fall 4% on rising imports, government actions, fall in demand

Pune: Increased imports of arhar/tur from Africa and masoor from Canada, and the government’s strict action on stock limits and aggressive selling of chana, along with reduced consumer demand amid high prices, have brought down prices of pulses by about 4% in one month.

Wholesale price of tur/arhar dal, the most expensive dal in the market, has declined by 4% in the past one month due to the stock limit imposed by the central government on traders and processors, trade body Indian Pulses and Grains Association (IPGA) said in a report.

Price of chana dal, which is currently the cheapest dal available in the market, has declined by 4% in one month while masoor price has softened by more than 2% due to rising imports and reduced demand.


According to IPGA, tur prices are expected to remain under pressure this week due to sluggish demand and an anticipated increase in supply from Africa.

Chana dal prices are expected to decrease further as government agency National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation (Nafed) has been selling it at lower rates.

“Chana prices continued to fall in October due to surge in supply of chana at affordable rates, competitive tenders by Nafed and popularity of Bharat Dal,” IPGA said in a report.

However, industry executives think that any surge in festival demand can lead to some increase in prices of pulses.

In the vegetables category, tomatoes, prices of which had crossed Rs 150 per kg in the retail market in July, are now selling at Rs 10-20/kg.

Tomatoes have been trading at Rs 3-6/kg in the wholesale markets for more than a month and the trend is likely to continue in the coming 2-3 weeks, said market functionaries.

At the Pimpalgaon APMC in Nashik, which is currently getting more than 250,000 crates (of 20 kg each) of tomatoes daily, the prices are in the range of Rs 3-6/kg.

“Farmers had planted more tomatoes due to record high prices in July. Dry weather reduced damages to the delicate crop, which has substantially increased the production in Nashik,” said Sanjay Londe, secretary of Pimpalgaon APMC.

Traders said there could be some increase in tomato prices when arrivals from other major growing regions like Bengaluru begin to shrink.