NEW DELHI: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday approved higher Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for all mandated Rabi crops for the 2027-28 Marketing Season, with safflower receiving the steepest increase of Rs 675 per quintal, followed by rapeseed and mustard at Rs 413 and lentil at Rs 390.
Under the revised MSP structure, wheat will fetch Rs 2,610 per quintal, an increase of Rs 25 from the previous year, while the MSP for barley has been raised by Rs 136 to Rs 2,286. The MSP for gram has been increased by Rs 83 to Rs 5,958. The MSP for lentil has been fixed at Rs 7,390, while rapeseed and mustard will have an MSP of Rs 6,613 and safflower Rs 7,215 per quintal.
Briefing media after the meeting of the Union Cabinet, Information & Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the increases are aimed at ensuring remunerative returns to farmers while encouraging a shift towards pulses and oilseeds as part of its crop-diversification strategy.
The revised rates are also in line with the Union Budget 2018-19 policy of fixing MSPs at a minimum of 1.5 times the All-India weighted average cost of production, he added.
Among the six mandated Rabi crops, wheat has the highest expected margin over the weighted average cost of production at 106 percent. This is followed by rapeseed and mustard at 96 percent, lentil at 92 percent, gram at 59 percent, barley at 58 percent and safflower at 50 percent.
In official statement the government said, it estimated the cost of production at Rs 1,264 per quintal for wheat, Rs 1,447 for barley, Rs 3,751 for gram, Rs 3,854 for lentil, Rs 3,367 for rapeseed and mustard and Rs 4,810 for safflower.
It also highlighted a sharp rise in procurement of wheat and other Rabi crops over the past decade. Wheat procurement during 2014-15 to 2025-26 reached 3,715 lakh metric tonnes (LMT), compared with 2,254 LMT during 2004-05 to 2013-14.
Combined procurement of the six Rabi crops stood at 3,921 LMT during 2014-15 to 2025-26, against 2,302 LMT in the preceding comparable period.
The MSP payments to wheat farmers also have also gone up substantially, reaching Rs 7.31 lakh crore during 2014-15 to 2025-26, compared with Rs 2.56 lakh crore during 2004-05 to 2013-14. For farmers growing the six Rabi crops, total MSP payments increased to Rs 8.36 lakh crore from Rs 2.65 lakh crore over the corresponding periods.
The government said the cost calculations used for determining MSPs cover key farm expenses, including hired labour, machinery, leased land, seeds, fertilisers, irrigation, depreciation, working capital, diesel and electricity, along with the imputed value of family labour.