Overview

• At a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Cabinet cleared MSPs for six rabi crops for the 2026–27 marketing season.
• New MSPs per quintal are barley at Rs 2,150, gram at Rs 5,875, lentil (masur) at Rs 7,000, rapeseed and mustard at Rs 6,200, and safflower at Rs 6,540.
• Safflower received the biggest absolute hike of Rs 600, followed by lentil up Rs 300, rapeseed and mustard up Rs 250, gram up Rs 225, and barley up Rs 170.
• The government says the increases ensure remunerative returns and align with the 1.5-times-cost policy, with estimated margins of 109% for wheat, 93% for rapeseed and mustard, 89% for lentil, 59% for gram, 58% for barley, and 50% for safflower.
• Wheat’s marketing year begins in April with most procurement done by June, and the government is targeting 119 million tonnes of wheat output in 2025–26 after an estimated 117.5 million tonnes in 2024–25.