Tamil Nadu asks Centre to hike milling copra MSP from Rs 75 to Rs 105 a kg

The Tamil Nadu government has asked the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare to declare minimum support price (MSP) for milling copra at Rs 105 per kg for the current 2018 copra season for safeguarding the interest of coconut growers.  

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edapadi K Palaniswami met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday and submitted a 20-point memorandum in which the state has asked to declare MSP for milling copra at Rs 105 per kg for the current 2018 copra season for safeguarding the interest of coconut growers of not only Tamil Nadu but other states also. This request would be in tune with the Centre's vision of doubling farmers' income, the memorandum said.  

Tamil Nadu is one of the major coconut growing states in the country with an area of around 435,000 hectares under cultivation.   

Every year, the Government of India, based on the recommendation of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), declares MSP for various agricultural crops, which also include copra.  

For crops like paddy, ragi and pulses, the Centre has fixed the MSP at 150 per cent of the cost of cultivation.  

For the 2018 copra season, the Centre has declared Rs 75.11 per kg as MSP for milling copra.     

However, in the major copra markets of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka, the present market price is ranging between Rs 90 and Rs 110 per kg and the same trend is expected to continue till the end of the season.  

Initially, the Tamil Nadu government had suggested an MSP of Rs 90 per kg for milling copra for the 2018 copra season after taking various factors, like area, production, pest and disease infestation, cost of cultivation, demand and supply, etc, into consideration. However, as highlighted by the state government, the present market rate stands between Rs 90 and Rs 110 per kg in leading copra markets in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka.    

The agmarknet.gov.in portal shows that the market price in neighbouring states also ranges above Rs 100 per kg and is even as high as Rs 160 per kg in some markets like Tumkur in Karnataka.