Govt hikes MSP for wheat by ₹85 per qtl

NEW DELHI : The government on Wednesday hiked the minimum support price for wheat by ₹85 to ₹1,925 a quinta.

A decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the cabinet committee on economic affairs (CCEA), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The MSP is the rate at which the government buys grains from farmers.

“In a move to increase farmers’ income, the cabinet has increased the MSP of rabi (winter-sown) crops for the current year,” information and broadcasting minister Prakash Javadekar told reporters after the meeting.

The CCEA has approved ₹85 per quintal hike in wheat MSP to ₹1,925 per quintal for the 2019-20 rabi crop, up from ₹1,840 per quintal last year.

Barley MSP has also been increased by ₹85 to ₹1,525 per quintal from ₹1,440 per quintal last year.

To encourage cultivation of pulses, the support price of masoor has been increased by ₹325 to ₹4,800 per quintal from ₹4,475 per quintal last year.

Similarly, the MSP for gram has been hiked by ₹255 to ₹4,875 per quintal for this year from ₹4,620 per quintal last year.

Among oilseeds, rapeseed/ mustard MSP has been increased by ₹225 to ₹4,425 per quintal for 2019-20 rabi crop from ₹4,200 per quintal during 2018-19. The minimum support price for safflower has been hiked by ₹270 to ₹5,215 per quintal from ₹4,945 per quintal last year. The MSP for rabi crops announced for this year is in line with the recommendation of the government’s farm price advisory body CACP.