MSP: extra confusion

The confusion over whether the Cabinet had approved a bonus of Rs 100 per quintal over and above the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of Rs 1,250 per quintal for paddy for the 2012-2013 crop marketing season took everyone by surprise. The first press statement issued by the government after a Cabinet meeting last week said a bonus of Rs 100 per quintal had been approved for paddy over and above the proposed increase of Rs 170 per quintal. The release was then withdrawn, and a fresh one issued that did not mention the bonus. The food ministry, officials said, was dead against the bonus, given the fact that high MSPs had already inflated its annual food subsidy burden. Whether the ministry had a role in withdrawing the old statement or whether the original release was just an official miscommunication is anybody’s guess.