Rabi harvest blues: Key crops sell 3-8% below MSP as maize plummets 24%
India’s key rabi crops, including wheat, chana and barley, sold 3-8% below MSP during April-June, while maize traded 24% lower. Mustard outperformed, selling 8% above MSP during the harvest season and rising 17% above MSP by July 8, reflecting stronger market demand.
The key rabi season crops — wheat, chana (gram), and barley — sold at an average of 3- 8 per cent below their respective minimum support prices (MSPs) in mandis (agricultural market yards) during the main harvesting period of April-June. Maize prices were the worst affected from the farmers’ perspective, ruling 24 per cent below the MSP, whereas masur (lentil) was almost at par with the benchmark rate.
However, the season’s main oilseed crop, mustard, emerged as the winner. It sold 8 per cent higher at an average of ₹6,674/quintal against the MSP of ₹6,200/quintal during April-June, and has now jumped further to ₹7,227/quintal, up 17 per cent from the benchmark rate.
The average mandi prices of these crops on July 8 show that, except for wheat, all other crops are now ruling above their past three-month averages, according to mandi price data maintained by the Agmarknet portal. While better rates in agricultural markets are seen as a help to farmers who depend solely on agricultural crops, any substantial rise also contributes to higher food inflation.
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Source : The Hindu Businessline
