MSP for Rabi crops up by Rs 100-500; wheat MSP up by Rs 110 per quintal
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the increase in the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for all mandated Rabi crops for Marketing Season 2023-24. As per the decision, the increase ranges from Rs 100 to Rs 500 per quintal. The MSP for wheat, the most important Rabi crop, has been increased to Rs 2,125 per quintal, up by Rs 110 per quintal.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the increase in the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for all mandated Rabi crops for Marketing Season 2023-24.
As per the decision, the increase ranges from Rs 100 to Rs 500 per quintal. The MSP for wheat, the most important Rabi crop, has been increased to Rs 2,125 per quintal, up by Rs 110 per quintal. It was Rs 2,015 per quintal in the last season.
The MSP for mustard and rapeseed has gone up by Rs 400 per quintal. Consequently, it has gone up to Rs 5,450 per quintal. The absolute highest increase in MSP has been approved for lentil (masur) at Rs 500 per quintal.
The government shared the information with regard to MSP increase after the CCEA meeting.
A massive decline was registered in the public procurement of wheat in the last Rabi reason due to the decline in its production. Wheat prices being above MSP led to the decline in its public procurement. Despite the government prohibiting wheat exports, the market prices of wheat are running at Rs 2,200-Rs 2,500 per quintal in various parts of the country. Given this situation, the increase in the MSP of wheat appears to be less than what it should be.
In response to the government’s MSP decision, Gurbakhshish Singh, a farmer from the Bhavanikheda tehsil in the Sangrur district of Punjab, said in an interview to Rural Voice that farmers also had to suffer losses last year due to less wheat production. Bearing this in mind, the government should have raised the MSP of wheat to at least Rs 2,200 per quintal so that farmers could get relief.
With the highest absolute increase in the MSPs declared for Rabi crops for 2023-24, the MSP for lentil (masur) has gone up from Rs 5,500 per quintal to Rs 6,000 per quintal. The MSP for gram has gone up by Rs 105 per quintal and now stands at Rs 5,335 per quintal for the 2023-24 Rabi season. The MSP for barley has been raised to Rs 1,735 per quintal, up by Rs 100 per quintal. The MSP for safflower has been raised to Rs 5,650 per quintal, up by Rs 209 per quintal.
