Cabinet hikes minimum support prices of Rabi crops; oilseeds, pulses get biggest boost

The Centre on Wednesday raised the minimum support prices (MSPs) for all six Rabi crops for the 2027–28 marketing season, giving the biggest price boosts to oilseeds and pulses.

The government said the higher MSPs are aimed at ensuring remunerative returns to farmers and a continuation of its efforts to encourage crop diversification, particularly towards pulses and oilseeds.

The MSP of safflower, an oil seed crop, received the largest absolute hike of ₹675 per quintal (up 10.3% to ₹7,215), followed by rapeseed and mustard with a ₹413 per quintal increase (up 6.6% to ₹6,613), according to a statement after a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Lentil (masur) saw an increase of ₹390 per quintal (up 5.5.%) to ₹7,390, while the MSP for barley was raised by ₹136 to ₹2,286 per quintal. Gram prices were increased by ₹83 to ₹5,958 per quintal.

In contrast, wheat received the smallest increase, (under 1%), raising MSP by ₹25 from ₹2,585 to ₹2,610. With the increase, wheat, however, will have the highest margin over its all-India weighted average cost of production at 106%, followed by rapeseed and mustard at 96%, lentil at 92%, gram at 59%, barley at 58% and safflower at 50%.

The MSPs are in line with its Budget 2018-19 commitment to fix MSP at least 1.5 times the all-India weighted average cost of production, the official statement said.

The latest MSP come as the government prepares for a Rabi season under climate uncertainties. On Tuesday, agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on asked states to align crop plans with water availability and soil moisture and prioritise pulses and oilseeds in water-stressed areas.

“Water availability and soil moisture should be assessed before finalising crop plans,” Chouhan had said, stressing the need to promote less water-intensive crops such as pulses and oilseeds.

A total amount of ₹90,962 crore was approved by the cabinet for this procurement.

The relatively small increase in wheat MSP comes against a backdrop of elevated government stocks. Food Corporation of India (FCI) wheat stocks at the beginning of September were up more than 44% from a year earlier, according to data cited by commodity market publication Informist. The government procured 35.76 million tonnes of wheat in the 2026-27 Rabi marketing season, up more than 19% from the previous year.

According to market experts, the high stock position limits the scope for a sharp increase in the wheat MSP, as the government is already carrying substantial inventories.

State-level bonuses can also reduce the impact of the central MSP announcement. Several states announce bonuses over and above the MSP for crops such as wheat and paddy.