Freeze Msp Of Wheat And Rice: Expenditure Reforms Commission

The commission, headed by former finance secretary K P Geethakrishnan, asked the government to fix MSP, based on the recommendations of expert bodies like the Commission for Agricultural Cost and Prices without further changes, official sources said.

The recommendations are part of the first report of the commission, set up by the government to suggest measures to prune its expenditure.

Government is yet to announce MSP for the forthcoming kharif procurement and it is highly unlikely that it would stick to the suggestions of the commission this season.

The commission has also recommended that present procurement system for rice should be replaced with a levy route system.

It said the levy percentage should be fixed anywhere between 50 to 70 per cent as the miller may choose and the revised levy price with reference to strict quality standards before the coming season.

Ministry of civil supplies and consumer affairs has already announced that it was likely to implement ERC's recommendation on procuring rice through the levy route system to cut costs and improve storage capacities instead of custom milled rice route system.