India Boosts MSP for Rabi Crops Amid Push for Domestic Production
The Indian government has announced higher Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for six rabi crops, including wheat, barley, gram, lentil, rapeseed and mustard, and safflower. The MSP hike varies across commodities, with safflower receiving the highest increase of Rs 675 per quintal.
The Centre has approved higher MSPs to promote crop diversification and reduce reliance on imports. Oilseeds and lentils will receive significantly larger increases, while wheat's support price was raised by just Rs 25 per quintal.
The government said the latest MSPs continue to follow the policy of fixing support prices at least 1.5 times the all-India weighted average cost of production. For 2027-28, the expected margin over the weighted average production cost is estimated at 106% for wheat, 96% for rapeseed and mustard, 92% for lentil, 59% for gram, 58% for barley, and 50% for safflower.