Govt raises wheat MSP by 6.59% to ₹2,585; safflower tops hike list

The government raised wheat MSP to Rs 2,585 per quintal for 2026-27 while safflower saw the highest hike of Rs 600 per quintal, followed by lentil, rapeseed, mustard and gram

After a sharp rise of more than 7 per cent two years ago, the central government on Wednesday increased the minimum support price (MSP) of wheat for the 2026-27 season (April-March) by 6.6 per cent to ₹2,585 per quintal, which is almost the same as the percentage increase of this year.

 

Wheat MSP of 2025-26 marketing season is ₹2,425 per quintal. Wheat is the most important cereal crop grown in the rabi season. The decision on MSP was taken at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

 

The wheat marketing year starts from April and much of the grain is procured by June. Other rabi crops include jowar, barley, gram, and lentil (masur).

 

The government has set a record wheat production target of 119 million tonnes (mt) for the 2025-26 crop year (July-June), as against the actual output estimated at a record 117.5 mt for 2024-25.

 

“The MSP increase in several crops is less than the increase in dearness allowance of government servants, which means farmers have been short-changed again,” said Sudhir Panwar, a former member of UP Planning Commission.

 

Briefing the media, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the Cabinet had approved the MSP for six rabi crops for 2026-27 based on recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP).

 

In absolute terms, the highest increase has been announced for safflower at ₹600 per quintal, followed by lentil at ₹300 per quintal. For rapeseed and mustard, the increase is ₹250 per quintal; gram ₹225 per quintal; barley ₹170 per quintal; and for wheat the hike is ₹160 per quintal. The MSP for barley has been increased to ₹2,150 per quintal from ₹1,980 per quintal.

 

Among key rabi pulses, the support price for gram has been fixed at ₹5,875 per quintal, up from ₹5,650 per quintal, while lentil MSP has been raised to ₹7,000 per quintal from ₹6,700 per quintal.

 

For oilseeds, the MSP of rapeseed and mustard has been raised to ₹6,200 per quintal from ₹5,950 per quintal while safflower support price has been increased to ₹6,540 per quintal from ₹5,940 per quintal.

 

The increased MSP for rabi crops is aimed at ensuring remunerative prices for farmers and incentivising crop diversification.

 

The hike is in line with the Union Budget 2018-19 announcement of fixing MSP at a level of at least 1.5 times the all-India weighted average cost of production.

 

The expected margin over all-India weighted average cost of production is 109 per cent for wheat, 93 per cent for rapeseed and mustard, 89 per cent for lentils, 59 per cent for gram, 58 per cent for barley, and 50 per cent for safflower.  MSP of rabi crops for 2026-27 marketing season Source: Government of India (April to March)  Prices in ₹/quintal