The Reserve Bank of India's annual report released Thursday outlined key agricultural policies and challenges for the 2023–24 seasons.
The report emphasised that minimum support prices (MSPs) for both the kharif and rabi seasons ensured a minimum return of 50 percent over production costs for all crops.
As of March 31, 2024, the public stock of foodgrains was 2.9 times the total quarterly buffer norm.
Additionally, on November 29, 2023, the government extended the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) for five more years, effective January 1, 2024.
The RBI's report, a statutory document from the central board of directors, also addressed the challenges faced by agriculture and allied activities due to an uneven and deficient southwest monsoon (SWM) coinciding with strengthening El Niño conditions.
The overall SWM rainfall for June to September 2023 was 6 percent below the long-period average (LPA) at the national level.
According to the second advance estimate, the production of kharif and rabi foodgrains in 2023–24 was 1.3 percent lower than the previous year's final estimates. However, millet output is expected to benefit from productivity gains.
MSPs for 2023–24 increased by 5.3–10.4 percent for kharif crops and 2.0–7.1 percent for rabi crops. Moong saw the highest MSP increase among kharif crops, while lentils (masur) and wheat had the highest increases among rabi crops.
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