MSP for summer-sown crops hiked by 50-83%

The Union Cabinet on Monday approved federally fixed minimum support prices (MSP) for 14 kharif or summersown crops, which will give farmers a 50-83% return on their cultivation cost, agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar said. The announcement came as the June-to-september monsoon for 2020, predicted by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) to be normal, made its onset over Kerala, its first port of call in the Indian mainland, on June 1, as predicted.

A normal monsoon will likely lessen the strain on the agriculture economy from widespread disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The summer rains are critical because nearly 60% of India’s net arable land lacks irrigation and nearly half the population depends on a farm-based livelihood.

The MSP for paddy, the main summer staple, has been raised by ~53 per to ~1,868 per quintal

for the 2020-21 crop year, which will give a return of 50% on the cost of cultivation, according to an official statement.

“(The) government has increased the MSP of Kharif crops for marketing season 2020-21, to ensure remunerative prices to the growers for their produce,” a Cabinet statement said.

The highest increases in MSP are for nigerseed (~755 per quintal) followed by sesamum (~370 per quintal), urad (~300 per quintal) and cotton (~260 per quintal). “The differential remuneration is aimed at encouraging crop diversification,” the official statement said.

For cotton, the MSP has been increased by ~260 to ~5,515 per quintal, Tomar said.