Haryana: Relief to mustard growers as govt to start procurement on MSP from March 14
Decision to advance procurement in Haryana has resulted in an increase of ₹300 to ₹500 per quintal in mustard seed prices in mandis as now black mustard is being sold at ₹5,000 per quintal while the prices of yellow mustard have exceeded to above the MSP. Mustard growers in the state heaved a sigh of relief
Mustard growers in the state heaved a sigh of relief as the government has announced to advance the procurement of mustard on minimum support price (MSP) from March 14.
Even as the harvesting of the crop is at its peak in the northern parts of the state, due to the lack of government agencies, farmers had to sell their produce to private buyers from ₹4,600 to ₹5,000 per quintal against the MSP of ₹5,450 per quintal.
Earlier the government had announced to start the procurement of mustard from March 28 but following reports that the growers of early maturing varieties were being forced to sell their produce to private buyers below the MSP, the government had written to the Centre requesting it to advance the procurement operations to March 20. Even Haryana State Cooperative Supply and Marketing Federation Limited (HAFED) will enter the mandis for commercial purchase of around 20,000 metric tonnes of mustard on the MSP from March 14.
The decision to advance procurement has also resulted in an increase of ₹300 to ₹500 per quintal in the mustard seed prices in the mandis as now black mustard is being sold at ₹5,000 per quintal while the prices of yellow mustard have exceeded to above the MSP and reached ₹5,800 in several mandis of the state on Sunday.
“As the government agencies are going to start the procurement soon, this led to competition among private traders and the prices have reported an increase of ₹500 in the past two-three days,” said Sohan Lal, an arhtiya of Ladwa grain market in Kurukshetra.
Sumita Misra, additional chief secretary, agriculture and farmers welfare department, said, “We have already issued a notification to advance the procurement of mustard on the MSP and the decision will help the farmers to get MSP”.
As per the notification issued on March 9, the governor of Haryana is pleased to notify the harvesting period of mustard in March 2023 and the procurement from March 20 to May 1.
Arun Kumar Ahuja, general manager, Procurement and Warehousing Division of the Hafed, said the mustard procurement (commercially) on MSP has been planned to be started from March 14 and under the Price Support Scheme on behalf of Nafed will start from March 20 and the procurement will be made as per the norms of the Centre.
As per the previous notification, the procurement of mustard was scheduled to start from March 28, procurement of gram from April 1 and sunflower from June 1.
