Govt allows 291 tonnes of pulses export to Maldives till FY17

India has permitted exports of about 291 tonnes of pulses, the shipment of which is banned, to Maldives till 2016-17 through public sector undertaking.

"Export of pulses to Maldives has been permitted for the years 2014-15 to 2016-17," Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has said in a notification.

Although exports of pulses are banned, the Indian government ships the commodity to the neighbouring country on diplomatic grounds, a source said.

Pulses exports are banned since June 2006 to augment the domestic supply and check prices. India is the largest consumer of the foodgrain. The country imports pulses to meet the domestic production shortfall of 3-4 million tonnes.

For 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17, the government has allowed exports of 87.85 tonnes, 96.63 tonnes and 106.29 tonnes respectively to Maldives.

As per the government estimate, the country is expected to produce 19.8 million tonnes (MT) of pulses this year, which includes 9.8 MT of chana crop, while trade figures says only 6.5 MT of chana crop this year.

Official figures show that India imported around 1.4 MT of pulses between April to September 2013.