Lok Sabha Question No. 29 (STARRED), answered on 2025-12-02
Subject: Selling of Crops below MSP
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: Shri Azad Kirti Jha

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

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. 29

TO BE ANSWERED ON 2 ND  DECEMBER, 2025

## SELLING OF CROPS BELOW MSP

*29. SHRI AZAD KIRTI JHA:

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

(a) whether the Government is aware of the fact that farmers in various parts of the country are being  forced  to  sell  their  crops  at  prices  lower  than  the  cost  price,  affecting  their  income adversely;

(b) whether all farmers are getting adequate benefits under the Minimum Support Price (MSP) scheme;

(c) if not, the reasons behind the extension of benefits of MSP to limited number of farmers only; and

(d)whether  the  Government  is  taking  any  special  initiatives  in  areas  like  crop  insurance, marketing facilities, storage and organic farming under the scheme to double the income of farmers and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

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

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

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) to (d) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 29 DUE FOR ANSWER ON 2 ND  DECEMBER,2025 REGARDING 'SELLING OF CROPS BELOW MSP'.

- (a) to (c): Every year, Government fixes Minimum Support Price (MSP) for 22 mandated agricultural crops based on the recommendations of Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP), after considering the views of 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.

Government  offers  to  procure  agricultural  crops  through  designated  procurement agencies and farmers have the option to sell their produce to the government agencies or in the open market whichever is advantageous to them.

Increased MSP has benefited farmers of the country which are evident from data of procurement and MSP amount paid to the farmers. The details of procurement and MSP amount paid to farmers during 2024-25 (Crop year) are given as under:

| Total Procurement (In LMT)   |   Total MSP Value (In Lakh Crore) |
|------------------------------|-----------------------------------|
| 1,223                        |                              3.47 |

- (d): For  the  benefit  of  farmers,  Government  has  taken  several  initiatives  which  include Pradhan  Mantri  Fasal  Bima  Yojana  (PMFBY)/Restructured  Weather  Based  Crop  Insurance Scheme  (RWBCIS),  Marketing  Scheme,  Agriculture  Infrastructure  Fund  and  Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) to encourage organic farming. Details of these are given below:
- (i) Pradhan  Mantri  Fasal  Bima  Yojana  and  weather  based  Restructured  weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (WBCIS) - Government has introduced Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) and weather index based Restructured Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme  (WBCIS)  from  Kharif  2016  to  provide  financial  support  to  farmers  suffering  crop loss/damage arising out of natural calamities, adverse weather incidence and to stabilize the income of farmers etc. Comprehensive risk insurance is provided under the scheme from presowing  to  post-harvest  losses.  This  scheme  is  voluntary  for  States  and  farmers  as  well. Achievement of the scheme during 2024-25 are given below:

| Total Farmers application Insured (lakh)   |   Area Insured (lakh ha) | Sum Insured   | Farmers Share in Premium   | Paid Claims   |
|--------------------------------------------|--------------------------|---------------|----------------------------|---------------|
| 1,514                                      |                      622 | 2,80,629      | 3,335                      | 12,256        |

- (ii) Agriculture  Infrastructure  Fund  (AIF) :  The  Agriculture  Infrastructure  Fund  is  a medium - long term debt financing facility for investment in viable projects for post-harvest management infrastructure and community farming assets through interest subvention and credit guarantee support. The Fund of Rs. 1 lakh crore under the scheme will be disbursed from FY 2020-21 to FY 2025-26 and the support under the scheme will be provided for the duration of FY2020-21 to FY 2032-33.

Since inception of the scheme till 25 th  November 2025, Rs. 76,980 Crores have been sanctioned for 1,39,837 projects under AIF across the country. These sanctioned projects have mobilized an investment of Rs.1,22,731 Crores in agriculture sector.

- (iii) Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure (AMI) sub-scheme under Integrated Scheme for Agricultural Marketing (ISAM): Supports the development of rural godowns and storage facilities, enhancing farmers' ability to store produce and sell at better prices.

Under AMI since inception and up to October 2025, a total of godowns 49,796with a capacity of 982.94 lakh MT have been sanctioned and subsidy of Rs. 4832.70 Crore has been released. Further, 25,009 agricultural marketing infrastructure projects (other than storage) have been sanctioned and subsidy of Rs. 2193.16 Crore has been released.

- (iv) Formation and Promotion of 10,000 FPOs scheme : To enhance the cost-effective productivity and provide the better marketing and credit linkages, government in February, 2020  launched  a  central  sector  scheme  of  formation  and  promotion  of  10,000  FPOs  to leverage their collectivization, specially  of small and marginal farmers, in the form of FPO. Target  of  formation  of  10,000  FPOs  has  already  been  achieved  and  government  is  now focusing on economic sustainability of these FPOs so as to improve the farmers/members' net income.
- (v) e-NAM  Integration: government  has  launched  e-National  Agriculture  Market  (eNAM), as a virtual e-trading platform and since its launch in April, 2016, 1522 APMC markets from 23 states and 4 UTs have been onboarded. Around 1.80 crore farmers and 4642 FPOs are registered with the portal to realize a competitively best discovered price in transparent manner.

(vi) Paramparagat  Krishi  Vikas  Yojana  (PKVY)Organic  farming  is  being  promoted through  Paramparagat  Krishi  Vikas  Yojana  (PKVY)  in  all  the  States/UTs  except  North Eastern States and Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER) for the North Eastern States since 2015-16. Both schemes stress on end-toend  support  to  farmers  engaged  in  organic  farming  i.e.  from  production  to  processing, certification and marketing. Primary focus of the schemes is to form organic clusters, with preference to small and marginal farmers, to create a supply chain. Both the schemes are implemented through States /UT Governments. Under PKVY, assistance of Rs. 31,500 per ha in 3 years is provided for promotion of organic farming. Out of this, assistance of Rs. 15,000 per ha is provided to farmers through Direct Benefit Transfer for on- farm /off -farm organic inputs. Under MOVCDNER, assistance of Rs. 46,500/ha in 3 years is provided for creation of Farmers Producer Organization, support to farmers for organic inputs etc. Out of this, assistance @ Rs. 32500/ ha is provided to farmers for off -farm /on -farm organic inputs under the scheme including Rs. 15,000 as Direct Benefit Transfer to the farmers.

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