After tomatoes and onions, soaring dal prices dampen festive fervour

Agencies
October 3, 2019

Bhopal, Oct 3: In the last one week, the price of urad dal has increased by Rs 450-Rs 850 per quintal in the major markets of the country. Along with urad, the prices of moong, masoor and chickpeas (chana) dal have also gone up.

Experts opine that pulses will be more expensive because the urad crop has suffered in Madhya Pradesh due to the incessant rain. At the same time, sowing of pulses has also been estimated to be less in this kharif season than last year.

Rajni, a resident of Delhi's Mandawali area, said that after the spike in vegetable prices, she used to manage with potatoes and lentils as the prices were low, but now pulses have also become expensive.Earlier, chickpeas (chana) was available at Rs 55-Rs 60 per kg, but now it has gone up to Rs 65-Rs 70 per kg while chickpea lentils (chana dal) is at Rs 90 per kg.

Mumbai's Amit Shukla, a pulses market expert, said that there was a rumour in the market on Tuesday that the government is going to impose a stock limit on pulses for wholesale and retail traders, which led to a one-day fall in the prices of all pulses. But for the last one week, the prices of gram, moong and lentils have been going up.

The wholesale price of Urad's FAQ (imported from Burma) variety in the country's financial capital Mumbai on Tuesday was Rs 5,450 per quintal, which is Rs 550 more than the previous week. At the same time, the price of FAQs in the National Capital Region of Delhi was up by Rs 450 to Rs 5,400 per quintal from the previous week. The price of FAQ Urad in Chennai was Rs 5,650, UQ of SQ Variety was Rs 6,775 per quintal. In Chennai, the prices of FAQ and SQ have increased by Rs 600 and Rs 525 per quintal respectively in the last one week. The price of FAQ Urad in Kolkata rose by Rs 850 to Rs 6,200 per quintal in the last one week.

The price of moong has also increased by Rs 100-Rs 200 in various cities during the last one week. The price of Rajasthan Line Moong was Rs 6,100 per quintal in Delhi on Tuesday. In Delhi, the price of moong has increased by Rs 200 per quintal in the last one week. At the same time, the price of gram has increased by Rs 25-Rs 100 per quintal in major mandis of the country in the last one week. In Ganj Basoda, Madhya Pradesh, the price of desi gram increased by Rs. 100 to Rs. 4,100 on Tuesday. The price of Lemon Tur in Delhi was Rs 5,300 a quintal and there has been no significant change in the price in the last one week.

During the crop year 2018-19 (July-June), the total production of all pulses was estimated to be 234.8 lakh tonnes, while traders indicated that the total consumption of pulses in the country was around 240 lakh tonnes.

Not only this, in the current crop year 2019-20, the production of Kharif pulses could be 82.3 lakh tonnes in 2019 as compared to 92.2 lakh tonnes in 2018.

President of the All-India Dal Mill Association, Suresh Agarwal told IANS that the government agency National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED) has a full stock of red gram and Bengal gram and also the new crops of red gram will arrive in November-December.

Madhya Pradesh has received non-stop rain for 40 days which has damaged the fields and the crop. It also affected the crop of green gram and black gram by 25-30 per cent. If the rain continues in the state then black gram and green gram might suffer further losses and their prices might increase by 5-10 per cent.

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News Network
December 16,2025

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah II in Amman, during which the two leaders discussed ways to further strengthen bilateral relations, with the Prime Minister outlining an eight-point vision covering key areas of cooperation.

Describing the meeting as “productive”, PM Modi said he shared a roadmap focused on trade and economy, fertilisers and agriculture, information technology, healthcare, infrastructure, critical and strategic minerals, civil nuclear cooperation, and people-to-people ties.

In a post on social media platform X, the Prime Minister praised King Abdullah II’s personal commitment to advancing India–Jordan relations, particularly as both countries mark the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties this year.

“Held productive discussions with His Majesty King Abdullah II in Amman. His personal commitment towards vibrant India-Jordan relations is noteworthy. This year, we are celebrating the 75th anniversary of our bilateral diplomatic relations,” PM Modi said.

The meeting took place at the Al Husseiniya Palace, where the two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest. According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), both sides agreed to further deepen cooperation in areas including trade and investment, defence and security, counter-terrorism and de-radicalisation, fertilisers and agriculture, infrastructure, renewable energy, tourism, and heritage.

The MEA said both leaders reaffirmed their united stand against terrorism.

PM Modi arrived in Amman earlier on Monday and was received by Jordanian Prime Minister Jafar Hassan, who accorded him a formal welcome. Following the talks, King Abdullah II hosted a banquet dinner in honour of the Prime Minister, reflecting the warmth of bilateral ties.

Jordan is the first leg of PM Modi’s three-nation tour. From Amman, the Prime Minister will travel to Ethiopia at the invitation of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali, marking his first official visit to the African nation. The tour will conclude with a visit to Oman.

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News Network
December 6,2025

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New Delhi: IndiGo, India’s largest airline, faced major operational turbulence this week after failing to prepare for new pilot-fatigue regulations issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The stricter rules—designed to improve flight safety—took effect in phases through 2024, with the latest implementation on November 1. IndiGo has acknowledged that inadequate roster planning led to widespread cancellations and delays.

Below are the key DGCA rules that affected IndiGo’s operations:

1. Longer Mandatory Weekly Rest

Weekly rest for pilots has been increased from 36 hours to 48 hours.

The government says the extended break is essential to curb cumulative fatigue. This rule remains in force despite the current crisis.

2. Cap on Night Landings

Pilots can now perform only two night landings per week—a steep reduction from the earlier limit of six.

Night hours, defined as midnight to early morning, are considered the least alert period for pilots.

Given the disruptions, this rule has been temporarily relaxed for IndiGo until February 10.

3. Reduced Maximum Night Flight Duty

Flight duty that stretches into the night is now capped at 10 hours.

This measure has also been kept on hold for IndiGo until February 10 to stabilize operations.

4. Weekly Rest Cannot Be Replaced With Personal Leave

Airlines can no longer count a pilot’s personal leave as part of the mandatory 48-hour rest.

Pilots say this closes a loophole that previously reduced actual rest time.

Currently, all airlines are exempt from this rule to normalise travel.

5. Mandatory Fatigue Monitoring

Airlines must submit quarterly fatigue reports along with corrective actions to DGCA.

This system aims to create a transparent fatigue-tracking framework across the industry.

The DGCA has stressed that these rules were crafted to strengthen flight safety and align India with global fatigue-management standards. The temporary relaxations are expected to remain until February 2025, giving IndiGo time to stabilise its schedules and restore normal air travel.

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News Network
December 20,2025

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At least seven elephants were killed and one calf injured after a herd collided with the Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express in Assam's Hojai on Saturday morning, leading to disruption of rail services. 

The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express struck a herd of elephants, resulting in the derailment of the locomotive and five coaches. No passenger casualties or injuries were reported, officials said.

The New Delhi-bound train met with the accident around 2.17 am, PTI reported. The Sairang-New Delhi Rajdhani Express connects Mizoram's Sairang (near Aizawl) to Anand Vihar Terminal (Delhi). 

Railway has issued helpline numbers at the Guwahati Railway Station:-

•    0361-2731621
•    0361-2731622
•    0361-2731623

The accident site is located about 126 km from Guwahati. Following the incident, accident relief trains and railway officials rushed to the spot to initiate rescue operations.

Train Services Disrupted

Sources said that due to the derailment and elephant body parts scattered on the tracks, train services to Upper Assam and other parts of the Northeast were affected.

Passengers from the affected coaches were temporarily accommodated in vacant berths available in other coaches of the train. Once the train reaches Guwahati, additional coaches will be attached to accommodate all passengers, after which the train will resume its onward journey.

The incident occurred at a location that is not a designated elephant corridor. The loco pilot, upon spotting the herd on the tracks, applied emergency brakes. Despite this, the elephants dashed into the train, leading to the collision and derailment.

Last month, an elephant was killed after being hit by a train in Dhupguri in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district. The incident took place on November 30. 

The adult elephant was killed on the spot, and a calf was discovered lying injured beside the tracks. 

Over 70 Elephants Killed In Train Collisions Over Last 5 Years

At least 79 elephants have died in train collisions across the country in the last five years, the Environment Ministry had informed Parliament in August.

In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh had said the figure is based on reports from state governments and Union Territory administrations for the period 2020-21 to 2024-25.

He said that the ministry does not maintain consolidated data on the deaths of other wild animals on railway tracks, including in designated elephant corridors.

Singh confirmed that three elephants, including a mother and her calf, were killed on July 18 this year after being hit by a speeding express train on the Kharagpur-Tatanagar section in West Bengal's Paschim Midnapore district. The incident took place near Banstala between Jhargram and Banstala stations.

The minister said several measures have been taken jointly by the Environment Ministry and the Railways to prevent such accidents.

These include imposing speed restrictions in elephant habitats, pilot projects such as seismic sensor-based detection of elephants near tracks and construction of underpasses, ramps and fencing at vulnerable points.

The Wildlife Institute of India, in consultation with the ministry and other stakeholders, has also issued guidelines titled 'Eco-friendly Measures to Mitigate Impacts of Linear Infrastructure' to help agencies design railways and other projects in ways that reduce human-animal conflicts.

Singh added that capacity-building workshops were conducted for railway officials at the Wildlife Institute of India in 2023 and 2024 to raise awareness on elephant conservation and protection.

A detailed report titled 'Suggested Measures to Mitigate Elephant & Other Wildlife Train Collisions on Vulnerable Railway Stretches in India' had also been prepared after surveys across 127 railway stretches covering 3,452 km.

Of these, 77 stretches spanning 1,965 km in 14 states were prioritised for mitigation, with site-specific interventions suggested. 

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