The government has increased the minimum support price of paddy for the current fiscal year. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, a Cabinet meeting held on September 14 fixed the minimum support price of coarse and medium variety of paddies for the fiscal year 2021/22.
The price of coarse paddy has been fixed at Rs. 2,752 per quintal and medium variety at Rs. 2,902 for the current fiscal year, said Prakash Kumar Sanjel, Joint Secretary and Spokesperson for the ministry.
The support price of paddy fixed this year has been increased by Rs. 17 per quintal compared to the price fixed last year, he said.
The minimum support price of coarse paddy was Rs. 2,735 per quintal and Rs. 2,885 per quintal for medium paddy in the last fiscal year. The government had fixed the minimum support price of coarse paddy at Rs. 2,532.80 per quintal and Rs. 2,673.16 per quintal for medium paddy for 2019/20.
The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies has tabled the minimum support price of paddy on the recommendation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development.
The government has a plan to fix the minimum support price of crops before their plantation to ensure saving and profit of farmers while planting the crops, but the prices have been fixed almost two months after the plantation completed.
The minimum support price is a measure taken by the government to protect farmers from the sudden declines in the market price.
The Food Management and Trading Company Limited used to purchase paddy from the farmers in the minimum support price.
Source : TRN,
