New Delhi, Oct 1: The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved the Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses with a financial outlay of Rs 11,440 crore.

The landmark initiative aimed at boosting domestic production and achieving self-sufficiency in pulses will be implemented over a six-year period from 2025-26 to 2030-31.

The Pulses Mission is expected to benefit around 2 crore farmers with the supply of better seeds, post-harvest infrastructure and 100 per cent assured procurement of tur, urad, and masoor pulses from growers at the Minimum Support Price during the next 4 years, according to an official statement.

Pulses hold special importance in India’s cropping systems and diets. India is the world’s largest producer and consumer of pulses. With rising incomes and standard of living, pulses’ consumption has increased. However, domestic production has not kept pace with demand, leading to a 15–20 per cent increase in pulses imports.

To make improved varieties widely available, 126 lakh quintals of certified seeds will be distributed to pulse-growing farmers, covering 370 lakh hectares by 2030-31.

The Mission also seeks to expand the area under pulses by an additional 35 lakh hectares by targeting rice fallow areas and other diversifiable lands, supported by promoting intercropping and crop diversification. For this, 88 lakh seed kits will be distributed free of cost to the farmers.

To reduce this import dependency, meet rising demand, maximise production, and enhance farmers’ income, a 6-year “Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses” was announced in the FY 2025-26 Budget. The Mission will adopt a comprehensive strategy covering research, seed systems, area expansion, procurement, and price stability.

The emphasis will be placed on developing and disseminating the latest varieties of pulses which are high in productivity, pest-resistant and climate-resilient. Multi-location trials will be carried out in major pulse-growing states to ensure regional suitability.

By 2030-31, the Mission is expected to expand the area under pulses to 310 lakh hectares, increase production to 350 lakh tonnes, and raise yield to 1130 kg/ha. Alongside productivity gains, the Mission will generate significant employment.

In addition, to ensure availability for premium quality seeds, states will prepare five-year rolling seed production plans. The breeder seed production will be supervised by the ICAR Foundation, and certified seed production will be done by state and central level agencies, and closely tracked through the Seed Authentication, Traceability & Holistic Inventory (SATHI) portal.

This will be complemented by convergence with the soil health programme, Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanisation, balanced fertiliser use, plant protection, and extensive demonstrations by ICAR, KVKs, and state Agriculture Departments to promote best practices.

Capacity building of farmers and seed growers will be taken up through structured training programmes to promote sustainable techniques and modern technologies.

To strengthen markets and value chains, the Mission will help develop post-harvest infrastructure, including 1,000 processing units, thereby reducing crop losses, improving value addition, and increasing farmer incomes. A maximum subsidy of Rs 25 lakh will be available for setting up processing and packaging units.

The Mission will adopt a cluster-based approach, tailoring interventions to the specific needs of each cluster. This will enable more effective allocation of resources, enhance productivity, and promote geographic diversification of pulse production.

A major feature of the Mission will be to ensure maximum procurement of tur, urad, and masoor under the Price Support Scheme (PSS) of PM-AASHA. NAFED and NCCF will undertake 100 per cent procurement in participating states for the next four years from farmers who register with these agencies and enter into agreements.

Additionally, to safeguard farmer confidence, the Mission will establish a mechanism for monitoring global pulse prices.

The mission seeks to achieve the goal of Atmanirbharta (self-reliance) in pulses, reduce import dependency and conserve valuable foreign exchange while boosting farmers’ incomes. This mission will also accrue significant environmental benefits in the form of climate resilient practices, improved soil health and making productive use of crop fallow areas.

New Delhi, Oct 1: Bankers on Wednesday welcomed the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) decision to maintain the repo rate at 5.5 per cent with a neutral stance, saying the move reflects a balanced approach in supporting growth and ensuring price stability.

A neutral stance requires neither stimulation nor curbs on liquidity as it strikes a fine balance between controlling inflation without hurting growth.

According to Binod Kumar, MD and CEO of Indian Bank, the RBI MPC’s stable policy fosters predictability for customers, translating to predictable EMIs and timely access to credit, which aids current consumption plans.

“This stability, along with lowering the risk weight on MSME and residential real estate, will boost demand in this sector. This supports broader economic objectives, including the ongoing efforts to internationalise the Rupee and propel India’s trajectory towards developed country status,” he said in a statement.

The RBI also raised its projection of India’s GDP growth rate to 6.8 per cent for 2025-26 from 6.5 per cent earlier.

Ajay Kumar Srivastava, Managing Director and CEO, Indian Overseas Bank, said with inflation under control, aided by easing of food prices and GST rationalisation, the upward revision of GDP growth to 6.8 per cent for FY26 showcases resilience of the Indian economy despite global volatility.

“For the banking sector, measures set towards regulatory initiatives such as proposed risk-based deposit insurance premiums, easing of risk weights for MSME and residential real estate lending, and enabling framework for corporate acquisition and capital market financing is expected to further increase credit flow in the market and promote inclusive growth,” said Srivastava.

Furthermore, the focus on expanding bouquet of services for basic bank savings deposit accounts through mobile and internet services will also have positive impact on consumers, he added.

According to Rajosik Banerjee, Partner and Deputy Head, Risk Advisory, and Head – Financial Risk Management, KPMG in India, said RBI’s monitory policy calls out important measures for strengthening the resilience and competitiveness of the Indian banks.

This includes issuance of much awaited Expected Credit Loss (ECL) framework applicable to all Scheduled Commercial Banks (excluding Small Finance Banks (SFBs), Payment Banks (PBs), Regional Rural Banks (RRBs)) and All India Financial Institutions (AIFIs) with effect from April 1, 2027 with a glide path (till March 31, 2031) to smoothen the one-time impact of higher provisioning.

“Additionally, there is a step towards moving towards revised ‘Basel III’ capital adequacy norms effective April 2027. And finally moving towards the ‘Standardized Approach for Credit Risk’, proposing lower risk weights on certain segments are expected to reduce the overall capital requirements,” explained Banerjee.

Mumbai, Oct 1: The Indian benchmark indices opened with mild gains on Wednesday, as investors await the decision of the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) monetary policy decision.

As of 9.30 am, the Sensex was up 144 points, or 0.18 per cent at 80,412, and the Nifty advanced 17 points, or 0.07 per cent at 24,628.

The broad cap indices, Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100, inched up 0.52 and 0.29 per cent, respectively. Shriram Finance, Tech Mahindra, Trent and Tata Consumer Products were among the major gainers on the Nifty pack, while losers included Bajaj Finance, Interglobe Aviation, Bajaj Finserv and SBI Life Insurance.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty Media, the top gainer, advanced 1.74 per cent. Nifty Pharma (up 1.24 per cent) and Nifty Realty (up 1.30 per cent) were other major gainers.

Analysts said that banking stocks will be the focus of attention since a rate cut at this juncture will impact their NIMs and their stock prices. A pause by the MPC will impart resilience to the banking stocks, they said.

Amid the continuing market weakness and decline caused by sustained selling from foreign institutional investors (FIIs), analysts recommended systematic investment in high-quality large-cap stocks, emphasising that patience is essential for long-term wealth creation.

According to market experts, Nifty can find support at 24,550, followed by 24,500 and 24,450. On the higher side, 24,650 can be an immediate resistance, followed by 24,700 and 24,750.

The US markets ended in the green zone overnight, as Nasdaq edged up 0.31 per cent, the S&P 500 added 0.41 per cent, and the Dow moved up 0.18 per cent in the last trading session.

The Asian markets were trading mixed during the morning session following gains on Wall Street as investors appeared unperturbed by a looming US government shutdown.

While China’s Shanghai index added 0.52 per cent, and Shenzhen advanced 0.35 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei declined 1.17 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.81 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.60 per cent.

On Tuesday, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 2,327 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of equities worth Rs 5,761 crore.