Commerce ministry cuts import quota for green peas

The commerce ministry has reduced the import quota for green peas to 75,000 tonne for 2020-21 and has laid down a procedure for its inbound shipments.

Last year, the quota for import of yellow and green peas was 1.5 lakh tonne.

According to a trade public notice of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), there is no quota for import of yellow peas for the current fiscal.

It said the import would be allowed only to the millers/refiners. The ministry has invited online applications from millers and refiners who have their own units.

"For each refining/processing unit, applicants shall provide self certified copy of a document issued by central/state/district authorities, indicating its refining/processing capacity," DGFT has said.

It said the applications will be received between April 21 to May 8.

"Successful applicants will have to ensure that the import consignments of allocated quota reach the Indian ports on or before March 31, 2020. Request for extension of time will not be entertained," it added.

The country has been importing 4-6 MT (million tonne) pulses every year to meet the domestic demand of about 24 MT. In view of the bumper output, the government has imposed a quantitative cap on the imports.