The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Wednesday approved an increase in the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for copra, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar said.
The decision, taken at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, would benefit copra farmers in 12 coastal States, he stated.
The MSP for Fair Average Quality of milling copra was increased by ₹375 to ₹10,335 a quintal for 2021 from ₹9,960 last year, an Agriculture Ministry statement said.
The MSP for ball copra was increased by ₹300 to ₹10,600 a quintal from ₹10,300 in 2020.
Recommendation of Commission
“The declared MSP ensures a return of 51.87% for milling copra and 55.76% for ball copra over the all-India weighted average cost of production. The approval is based on recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices,” it said.
The Ministry said the increase in MSP was in line with the principle announced in the Budget 2018-2019 of fixing MSP at 1.5 times the all-India weighted average cost of production at least. “It assures a minimum of 50% as margin of profit as one of the important and progressive steps towards making possible doubling of farmers' incomes by 2022,” the statement said.
The National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited and the National Cooperative Consumer Federation of India Limited would continue as the nodal agencies for price support. In the 2020 season, the government procured 5,053.34 tonnes of ball copra and 35.58 tonnes of milling copra, it added.
