UPDATE1 -India needs higher pulses imports in FYO9- trade

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MUMBAI, April 11 (Reuters) - India would have to import more pulses in 2008/09 than in the previous year to meet rising demand, an industry official and a trader said on Friday.

India's pulses imports would be at 2.9 million tonnes in the year-ended March 2008 estimated Sudhakar Tomar, director of Hakan Agro DMCC, on the sidelines of a grain conference.

The country's winter pulses output is expected to go down and it will force India to import more than the previous year, he said.

India's winter, or rabi season, pulses output is likely to fall by 8.82 percent to 8.57 million tonnes in 2007/08, against 9.40 million tonnes a year earlier.

However higher prices will restrict imports, Tomar said.

In 2007 India asked the state-run agencies to import 1.5 million tonnes of pulses to calm prices in domestic market. The wholesale price index INWPI=ECI rose 7.41 percent in the 12 months to March 29, accelerating from the previous week's 7.0 percent, to post its biggest rise since mid-November 2004, data showed on Friday.

"Prices are very high in the global market. There are no signs that they will come down...we have to import at higher prices," said K.C. Bhartiya, president, Pulses Importers' Association of India.

"Production is barely catching up with the demand. If we have a one bad crop in any of the producing country prices may escalate," Tomar said.

India, the biggest producer and consumer, imports pulses from Australia, Myanmar, Canada and U.S.

India's pulses output is estimated at 14.34 million tonnes in 2007/08, against 14.20 million tonnes a year earlier. (Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav; Editing by Harish Nambiar)