Modi 3.0: Cabinet’s first decision to hike Kharif crops MSPs by 1-13%
The Centre has announced the new minimum support prices (MSPs) of kharif crops as sowing has started with the arrival of monsoon in several parts of the country by raising the benchmark rates between 1.4 per cent and 12.7 per cent. The MSP of the current kharif season’s main cereal crop paddy has been hiked 5.4 per cent to ₹2,300 per quintal from ₹2,183/quintal in 2023-24.
Briefing media after the Cabinet approved the MSP on Wednesday, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that farmers will receive ₹2-lakh crore from the new MSPs announced and it is ₹35,000 crore more than the previous year.
The minister also said the new MSPs have been fixed as per the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP).
Highest increase
According to the Cabinet decision, the highest absolute increase in MSP over the previous year is on nigerseed by ₹983/quintal and the lowest ₹117/quintal in paddy. Experts said the lowest hike in paddy among all crops could be due to an estimated 18 million tonnes of surplus rice stock with the government during 2024-25.
The maximum hike has been given to MSP of nigerseed to ₹8,717/quintal from ₹7,734/quintal, up by 12.7 per cent while the lowest raise of 1.4 per cent seen in moong to ₹8,682/quintal from ₹8,558/quintal.
The MSP for ‘A’ grade variety of paddy has been hiked to ₹2,320 per quintal from ₹2,203/quintal for the current kharif season. As much as 85 per cent of the paddy procured by the government if of Grade A variety.
Among other crops, the new MSP of Jowar (hybrid) stands at ₹3,371/quintal, that of Bajra at ₹2,625/quintal, maize at ₹2,225/quintal, ragi ₹4,290/quintal, tur (Arhar) ₹7,550/quintal, urad ₹7,400/quintal, groundnut ₹6,783/quintal, sunflower seed ₹7,280/quintal, soyabean ₹4,892/quintal, sesamum ₹9,267/quintal and cotton (Long staple) ₹7,521/quintal.
Vaishnaw also said the government has been following the 2018 policy decision which stipulated that MSP should be at least 50 per cent more than the cost of production.