The agricultural produce is heavily influenced by the behavioural changes across consumers and farmers. With the advent of ‘National food Security Mission (NFSM), the government is concentrating efforts in enhancing the production of oilseeds and pulses in the country, with the growing domestic demand.
India is the largest producer of oilseeds in the world accounting for more than 20% of the global area and 10% of the global production. Pulses, on the other hand, are one of the most important food crops globally due to its high protein content. India, in Pulses as well, accounts for the largest producer in the world. It is pertinent to note that, India exported 2,96,169.83 MT of pulses to the world – worth Rs 2,116.69 Crores during the year 2020-2021.
Achieving Self-Sufficiency in Oilseeds and Pulses
With the view to enhance the production of oilseeds and pulses, the government has put in place – National Food Security Mission (NFSM). Under this mission, assistance is extended by the State Governments to farmers for interventions like cluster demonstrations on improved package of practices, demonstrations on cropping system, seed production and distribution of High Yielding Varieties/Hybrids, improved farm machineries/resource conservation machineries/tools, efficient water application tools, plant protection measures, nutrient management/soil ameliorates, cropping system based trainings to the farmers etc.
Additionally, the mission also extended support to Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) & State Agricultural Universities (SAUs)/Krishi VigyanKendras (KVKs) for transfer of technology to the farmer under supervision of Subject Matter Specialists/Scientists. Besides, Rashtriya Krishi VikasYojana RAFTAAR (RKVY-RAFTAAR) provides provision for crop production related activities on oilseeds and pulses.
There has been a significant rise in the production of Oilseeds and Pulses in the country, due to government interventions and policies. In 2019-2020, production of oilseeds and pulses remained 33.22 million tonnes and 23.03 million tonnes respectively. For the year 2020-21, production of oilseeds and pulses increased to 35.95 million tonnes and 25.46 million tonnes respectively.
What is the National Food Security Mission?
Launched in 2007-08, the National Food Security Mission, a centrally sponsored scheme, aims at increasing production of rice, wheat, pulses, coarse cereals, and nutri-cereals with the aid of area expansion and productivity enhancement in the identified districts of India. The mission also targeted at improving soil fertility, farm level productivity besides, transfer of technology through demonstrations and training, incentives on critical inputs like quality seeds, water saving devices, farm equipment and machinery etc.
NFSM continued during the 12th – Five Year Plan with the target of additional production of 25 million tonnes of food grains. Beyond the 12th Plan, the mission is being continued with a new additional target of 13 million tonnes of food-grains from 2017-18 to 2019-20. As per 4th Advance Estimates total food-grains production achieved during 2018-19 is 284.95 million tonnes. NFSM is being implemented in identified districts of 29 states in the country. The supplementary nutrition programmes envisaged under the National Food Security Act for pregnant women and lactating mothers and children upto the age of 14 years are operating smoothly and no proposal to reassess these programmes is under consideration of the Government.
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