India: Food Inflation Concerns Lead to Removal of Pulse Import Restrictions

On May 15, 2021, India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry issued Notification S.O. 1858 (E), which was officially published in the Gazette of India (eGazette). The notification amends the import policy for select pulses (i.e., pigeon peas (Cajanus cajan), mung beans (Vigna radiata), and urad/black gram lentil (Vigna mungo), specifically removing these select pulses from the restricted list and placing them on the free list. The notification authorizes the unrestricted import of consignments with bills of lading issued on or before October 31, 2021 and cleared by Indian Customs before November 30, 2021. The measure removes quantitative import volume restrictions on these commodities.