HowIndiaEarns

Besan (Gram Flour) Making Business

बेसन बनाने का व्यवसाय · बेसन उद्योग

Grind chana dal into besan on a small plant and sell in bulk bags to namkeen makers, sweet shops, caterers and kirana wholesalers.

₹5–10 lakhPrices not yet confirmed with suppliers

Investment

₹9.6 lakh

Profit (year 2)

₹39,000/month

Space

800 sq ft

Staff

4 + you

A besan unit cleans chana dal, grinds it fine in a besan plant or pulverizer, sifts it and packs it in 30 kg bags or smaller pouches. Besan is a daily ingredient for farsan and sweet makers, hotels and homes, so buyers are easy to identify and they buy every week. It is a volume business: the dal is nearly all of the cost and the margin is only a few rupees a kilo, so the unit must sell several tonnes a month to bulk users. The hard parts are chana dal price swings, the large money tied up in dal stock and credit to buyers, and customers who test quality closely because mixing besan with cheaper flours is common in the trade.

Skills needed: Judging dal quality and moisture, running and maintaining the mill, and selling to bulk users on trust and consistency.

Profit calculator

Change the numbers to match your town

500 kg/day: Besan in 30 kg bags

Add-ons

Total investment

₹9.59 lakh

Your own money

₹95,933

Subsidy

—

Bank loan

₹8.63 lakh

Mudra Tarun

A typical month in year 2

Sales₹9,50,000
Raw material & packing−₹8,25,000
Electricity−₹16,250
Salaries−₹47,250
Rent−₹12,600
Other running costs−₹9,975
Operating profit₹38,925
Loan instalment (EMI)−₹15,922
You keep each month₹23,003

After the loan is repaid, the EMI becomes your income too. Your own salary is not counted as a cost: the profit is your income.

Break-even at 39% capacityDSCR 4.22 (banks like ≥1.5)Payback ≈ 2.7 years

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Investment breakdown

Machinery & equipmentPrice
Semi-automatic besan plantAbout 150–200 kg/hr, 5–10 HP₹1,50,000₹1.25 lakh–₹1.8 lakh
Second pulverizer for fine grinding5 HP₹55,000₹40,000–₹75,000
Dal cleaner / destoner₹25,000₹15,000–₹40,000
Sifter₹25,000
Platform weighing scale and table scale₹14,000₹9,000–₹20,000
Bag stitching machine₹7,000₹5,000–₹12,000
Electrical panel, foundation and dust collection₹40,000
Pallets, racks and tools₹20,000
Automatic pouch packing machine for 500 g and 1 kg packsadd-on₹1,80,000
Machinery & equipment (without add-ons)₹3,36,000
FSSAI, Udyam and other registrations₹6,000
Three-phase connection and wiring₹40,000
Bag printing and brand design₹15,000
Trial runs and lab test₹8,000
Working capital 10 days of raw material, 10 days of credit to buyers, 1 month of expenses₹5,54,333
Total project cost₹9,59,333

Typical market prices as of October 2026, from supplier listings. Prices vary by brand, capacity and city; always get 2–3 quotes.

Cost and margin per unit

Besan in 30 kg bags (per kg)₹
Chana dal (1.04 kg at ₹62/kg, incl. cleaning and milling loss)64.50
Bags and stitching1.50
Material cost66.00
Selling price76.00
Margin before running costs10.00 (13%)

Bulk rate; supplier listings for 30 kg bags were ₹74–86/kg and a mandi rate for chana dal about ₹62/kg in mid-2026. Both move together, so re-enter current rates in the calculator.

Space, power and staff

800 sq ft

Rented shed · rent ≈ ₹12,000/month

Small-town or city-outskirts rent. Needs a dry, pest-free store for dal and flour and a loading point for tempos.

15 kW, three-phase

Bill ≈ ₹25,000/month at full capacity

4 staff + you

  • 1 × Mill operator: ₹13,000
  • 2 × Loading and packing helpers: ₹10,000
  • 1 × Sales and delivery: ₹12,000

Licences and registrations

FSSAI registration / licence

mandatory

When: Before you sell · Cost: ₹100/yr for basic registration; state licence ₹2,000–5,000/yr above the turnover limit

At the sales assumed here you are likely above the basic-registration limit. Check the current limit on foscos.fssai.gov.in.

Udyam registration

recommended

When: Before applying for a loan · Cost: Free

Apply only on udyamregistration.gov.in.

GST registration

if applicable

When: When turnover crosses the registration limit; at this scale it will · Cost: Free

Pre-packed and labelled besan has been taxed at 5%, with different treatment for loose sales. Confirm the current position with a CA.

Legal Metrology packer registration

if applicable

When: Before selling pre-packed bags and pouches · Cost: Varies by state

Pollution control consent

if applicable

When: Before starting, if your state lists flour mills · Cost: Varies by state

Mandi (APMC) licence

if applicable

When: If you buy dal directly in a regulated market · Cost: Varies by state

How it works

  1. Buy chana dal; check moisture, colour and admixture.
  2. Clean and destone.
  3. Grind in the besan plant; regrind for fine besan where buyers want it.
  4. Sift and cool the flour.
  5. Weigh, bag, stitch and stack on pallets.
  6. Dispatch oldest stock first.

Loan route

Mudra loan (Tarun)

Own money ₹95,933 · Loan ₹8.63 lakh · EMI ≈ ₹11,854

The loan includes a cash-credit limit of ₹3.55 lakh for stock and credit to buyers. Only interest is paid on it; the EMI is on the remaining term loan.

No collateral, no subsidy.

How Mudra works

PMEGP (new units)

Subsidy ₹1.44 lakh (general, urban) to ₹3.36 lakh (special category, rural). EMI ≈ ₹8,499–₹5,144.

Own money 5–10%. Subsidy is held as a 3-year deposit, then adjusted against the loan.

How PMEGP works

Assumes 10.5% interest, 5 years including a 6-month moratorium. PMEGP was approved up to FY 2025-26. Check on the KVIC PMEGP portal that applications are open before you plan around the subsidy.

No collateral and no third-party guarantee (covered by the Credit Guarantee Fund for Micro Units).

Who buys and how to sell

Buyers

  • Namkeen and farsan makers
  • Sweet shops and caterers
  • Hotels, canteens and snack stalls
  • Kirana wholesalers
  • Households (small packs)

Ways to sell

  • Direct weekly supply to bulk users
  • Wholesalers in the grain market
  • Own-brand small packs through shops

Season: Steady, with higher demand before Diwali and during the monsoon snack season.

Competition: Large flour brands, dal mills that also grind besan, and local chakkis. Bulk buyers stay with a supplier whose besan fries the same every time.

Risks and how to handle them

Chana dal prices move sharply while you hold stock

Keep stock low, price besan off the day's dal rate and avoid fixed long-term prices.

Buyers delay payment on large bills

Set a credit limit per buyer and collect before the next delivery.

Infestation or dampness in stored dal and flour

Store on pallets, rotate stock quickly and follow a pest-control schedule.

FSSAI sample fails for admixture

Grind only chana dal, keep purchase bills and test a sample at a lab periodically.

Tips from the trade

  • The numbers on this page assume stock and credit are financed by a cash-credit limit, not the term loan; you can switch this in the calculator.
  • Farsan makers judge besan by how it fries; give trial bags and ask for feedback.
  • Coarse (ladoo) and fine besan are different products; ask each buyer which they need.
  • Running the mill on customers' dal for a grinding charge fills idle hours.

Questions people ask

How much besan comes from one kilo of chana dal?

Almost all of it, less a few percent lost in cleaning, dust and moisture. This profile assumes 1.04 kg of dal for 1 kg of besan; measure your own loss over the first few batches.

Should I make besan from whole chana instead of dal?

That needs dal-milling machinery to remove the husk first and a much larger investment. Small units buy ready chana dal.

How much investment is needed to start a besan (gram flour) making business?

About ₹9.59 lakh for a small unit: ₹3.36 lakh for machinery and equipment, ₹69,000 for set-up costs and ₹5.54 lakh as working capital (stock, credit to buyers and one month of expenses). Prices as of October 2026.

How much profit can a besan (gram flour) making business make per month?

At 50% of capacity, sales are about ₹9.5 lakh a month and operating profit about ₹38,925 before the loan instalment. After an EMI of about ₹15,922, the owner keeps about ₹23,003 a month until the loan is repaid. These are estimates; your prices, rent and sales decide the real figure.

Which machines are needed for besan (gram flour) making?

Semi-automatic besan plant (₹1.25 lakh–₹1.8 lakh); Second pulverizer for fine grinding (₹40,000–₹75,000); Dal cleaner / destoner (₹15,000–₹40,000); Sifter (about ₹25,000).

Can I get a Mudra loan or PMEGP subsidy for besan (gram flour) making?

With a project cost of about ₹9.59 lakh, the bank loan of about ₹8.63 lakh falls under Mudra Tarun. Mudra has no subsidy. As a new unit you may instead apply under PMEGP, where the subsidy is 15–35% of the project cost (up to about ₹3.36 lakh here for a special-category applicant in a rural area). PMEGP was approved up to FY 2025-26. Check on the KVIC PMEGP portal that applications are open before you plan around the subsidy.

What licences are required for besan (gram flour) making?

Mandatory: FSSAI registration / licence. Depending on your set-up you may also need: Udyam registration, GST registration, Legal Metrology packer registration, Pollution control consent, Mandi (APMC) licence.

Similar businesses

Atta Chakki (Flour Mill) Business

आटा चक्की व्यवसाय · पिठाची गिरणी

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Investment

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Namkeen (Farsan) Making Business

नमकीन बनाने का व्यवसाय · फरसाण उद्योग

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Space

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Prices as of October 2026. Prices here come from online listings and published guides and have not yet been confirmed with local suppliers. Profit figures are estimates from the assumptions above, not a promise of income.

Sources: IndiaMART: besan flour mill plant prices · IndiaMART: besan flour grinding machine prices · IndiaMART: gram flour (besan) prices · aCrop: chana dal mandi price, Chandausi APMC · FSSAI FoSCoS (registration and licensing)

Spotted an outdated price? Tell us. Data for this page: HowIndiaEarns.