kharif crops: MSP of 14 kharif crops increased, millet producers to benefit



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NEW DELHI: The Center on Wednesday raised the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of 14 kharif harvests (sown) for the 2018-19 marketing season, synchronizing it with the promise of BJP 2014 to provide farmers with a profit margin of at least 50% of their production cost for all crops reported across the country.

Seven of these 14 crops reported increases of almost 20% or more compared to the PSM of these crops in 2017-18. The most popular kharif crop, paddy, however, grew by almost 13% (from Rs. 1,550 per quintal in 2017-18 to Rs. 1,750 per quintal in 2018-19).

The new MSPs for these crops were approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday. Modi later called this a "historic increase" and tweeted that the government has fulfilled its promise to increase the MSP to one and a half times the cost of production.

The announcement comes in the context of the political imperative to fulfill the commitment to improve the agreement for farmers before the crucial cycle of state elections and the battle of 2019 for the control of the Lok Sabha.

  Kharif 1

Interestingly, less water-soluble and climate-resilient mils (jowar, bajra and ragi) – recently reported by the government as "nutri-cereals" because of their very high nutritional value – have experienced substantial increases over the rice paddy water. In relation to paddy area (396 ha lakh), mils currently cover about 120 ha lakh during the kharif season, less than a third of the paddy area.

  Kharif 2

The movement of millet could help the government politically in the three states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, where water-stressed farmers invariably go on to grow coarse cereals. those who have called for greater support for coarse grain producers by invoking their nutritional value as well as the fact that they are consumed by the "least privileged".

The badysis of the new MSP shows that rice farmers will get a 50% yield higher than the cost of production, but those who opt for bajra (pearl millet) will get almost 97% yield and those who will go for arhar (pulse) will get yields of over 65%.

The new message of the new MSP scheme is to encourage farmers to grow legumes, oilseeds and mils. Pulses and mils will provide nutritional security while a larger oilseed production will help reduce the import bill.

Among nutri-cereals, Bajra's MSP was increased from Rs 525 per quintal, jowar (hybrid) of Rs 730 per quintal and rag of Rs 997 per quintal in absolute terms compared to the 2017- support price. 18. However, the highest percentage of MSP compared to the previous year is observed by ragi (52.5%). Regarding returns on production costs, Bajra farmers will get the highest profit of 97%.

"This will increase farmers' incomes and ability to purchase, which will have an impact on economic activity in the broadest sense," Interior Minister Rajnath Singh said.

However, experts and agricultural activists have reported poor quality of supply and inadequate cost of production.

"The highly publicized increase in MSP is of little benefit to farmers unless it is supplemented by a robust supply system.This system exists only for paddy at this time and this also in some states, "said Sudhir Panwar, former member of the planning commission of the UP.

Avik Saha, national organizer of Jai Kisan Andolan, said: "Although the announcement seems grandiose and favorable to farmers, let's not forget that to announce the MSP and do nothing for that farmers get the MSP has become a political tool. "

Radha Mohan Singh, Minister of Agriculture, and Ram Vilas Paswan, Minister of Food, however, expressed confidence in the front of supply.

Many agricultural activists have expressed dissatisfaction with the formula for arriving at the cost of production. They stated that the government should have considered formula C2 (total cost including rent charged on owned land and interest on value of fixed badets) instead of A2 + FL .

The A2 + FL includes all costs paid such as those incurred due to a salaried work force, hand labor or machine, rent paid for the land, irrigation costs, depreciation of instruments, miscellaneous expenses and the imputed value of family labor.

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