Lok Sabha Question No. 149 (STARRED), answered on 2026-02-10
Subject: Legal Guarantee for MSP
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: Shri Hanuman Beniwal

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE & FARMERS WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE & FARMERS WELFARE

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 149

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 10 TH   FEBRUARY, 2026

## LEGAL GUARANTEE FOR MSP

*149.  SHRI HANUMAN BENIWAL:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE क ृ िष एवं िकसान कʞाण मंũी be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government reviews the procurement at Minimum Support Price (MSP) in various States, particularly in Rajasthan;

(b) if so, the details thereof and the lacunae identified during the last three years and the corrective measures taken thereon;

(c)  whether  the  Government  proposes  to  enact  a  law  to  provide  a  legal  guarantee  for procurement at MSP, if so, the time by which it is likely to be enacted and if not, the reasons therefor;

(d)  whether  the  Government  has  constituted  a  committee  to  bring  MSP  under  a  legal framework; and

(e)  if  so,  the  details  of  the  meetings  held  so  far  by  the  said  committee,  along  with  the suggestions and  recommendations made by the committee regarding  the  legal  status  of MSP?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE क ृ िष एवं िकसान कʞाण मंũी (SHRI SHIVRAJ SINGH CHOUHAN)

(a) to (e): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) to (e) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION  NO  149*  DUE  FOR  ANSWER  ON  10 TH   FEBRUARY,  2026  REGARDING 'LEGAL GUARANTEE FOR MSP'

(a) & (b): Every  year,  Government  fixes  Minimum  Support  Prices  (MSPs)  for  22 mandated agricultural crops for the country as a whole, based on the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP), after considering the views of the State Governments and Central Ministries/Departments concerned.

The Union Budget for 2018-19 had announced the pre-determined principle to keep MSPs  at  levels  of  at  least  one  and  half  times  of  the  cost  of  production.  Accordingly, Government had increased MSPs for all mandated Kharif, Rabi and other commercial crops with a minimum return of 50 percent over all India weighted average cost of production from year 2018-19 onwards, which has benefitted farmers across the country.

To realize the objectives of MSP Policy, after announcement of MSP, Government procures cereals and coarse cereals through Food Corporation of India (FCI)  and  other  designated  State  Agencies  to  provide  price  support  to  the  farmers. Procurement  of  pulses,  oilseeds  and  copra  is  done  under  Price  Support  Scheme  under Umbrella Scheme of Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay Sanrakshan Abhiyan (PM-AASHA), in consultation  with  the  concerned  State  Government  as  and  when  market  price  of  these produce fall below the MSP. Procurement agencies under PM-AASHA Scheme are National Agricultural  Cooperative  Marketing  Federation  of  India  Ltd  (NAFED)  and  National  Cooperative Consumers' Federation of India Ltd. (NCCF). Cotton and Jute are also procured by Government at MSP through Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) and Jute Corporation of India (JCI), respectively.

Increased  MSP  has  benefitted  farmers  of  the  country  including  farmers  of Rajasthan, which is evident from details of all India procurement and MSP amount paid to farmers during last three years, given below:

## Procurement & MSP value of MSP Crops

| All MSP Crops                             | 2022-23   | 2023-24   | 2024-25   |
|-------------------------------------------|-----------|-----------|-----------|
| Total Procurement (in lakh metric tonnes) | 1,118     | 1,089     | 1,223     |
| Total MSP Value (in lakh crore)           | 2.47      | 2.63      | 3.47      |

To  encourage domestic production & ensure remunerative prices to farmers, procurement of Tur, Urad and Masur from the pre-registered farmers is undertaken as much as offered by them through the Central Nodal Agencies under Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses till 2030-31.

From 2024-25 season, Government added another component under Market intervention scheme for reimbursing the Storage and Transportation cost of  TOP crops (Tomato, Onion and Potato) to central nodal agencies & state designated agencies for transporting them from the producing state to consuming states in the interest of the farmers.

(c) to (e): To make Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) more effective and transparent, a Committee has been constituted by the Government on 12 th July 2022. The subject matter of this  Committee  also  include  (i)  Suggestions  on  practicality  to  give  more  autonomy  to Commission  for  Agricultural  Costs  and  Prices  (CACP)  and  measures  to  make  it  more scientific,  and  (ii)  To  strengthen  the  Agricultural  Marketing  System  as  per  the  changing requirements  of  the  country  to  ensure  higher  value  to  the  farmers  through  remunerative prices of their produce by taking advantage of the domestic and export opportunities. The meetings of this Committee are being organized regularly and till date, 6 meetings have been held. Additionally, 39 meetings of various sub-committees have also been held.

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