Pune: India’s pulses trade body has urged the government to revoke the memorandum of understanding with Mozambique that commits India to import 200,000 tonnes of tur dal from the country every year till 2025-26.
The Indian Pulses and Grains Association (IPGA) said that one influential exporter in Mozambique has not been allowing other exporters to ship tur to India, thereby driving up the prices.
“He has been forcing other exporters to sell tur to him. He has been holding the stocks and hiking the prices,” said Bimal Kothari, president, IGPA. Pulses importers in India have been facing challenges in sourcing tur from Mozambique for the past two months.
India has been importing tur from Mozambique, Myanmar, and Malawi as the domestic prices have been ruling at uncomfortably high levels due to a smaller Indian crop in the kharif 2022-23 season. “Given that tur production in the current kharif crop is likely to remain lower, we are again likely to face supply tightness next year,” Kothari said.
