NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India has sought responses from the Centre and other authorities on a plea concerning the fixation of Minimum Support Price (MSP) for agricultural produce.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi issued notices to the Union Government, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, and the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices.
The petition urged that MSP determination should give greater weight to state-specific cost of cultivation, arguing that variations across states are not adequately reflected in the current system.
The Court observed that MSP fixation involves complex economic considerations, including differences in land and capital costs, and remarked that a uniform pricing policy may not be feasible. It noted that the plea effectively calls for a reworking of existing economic policy.
The petition also cited the MS Swaminathan Commission Report, which recommended fixing MSP at cost plus 50 percent profit, and claimed that current MSP levels fall short of this benchmark.
