India’s Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on 30 September 2026 approved higher minimum support prices (MSP) for all six mandated rabi crops for the 2027-28 marketing season, according to a Press Information Bureau release. The largest absolute increase went to safflower, at Rs 675 per quintal, followed by rapeseed and mustard at Rs 413. Wheat received the smallest increase, Rs 25 per quintal. Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Information and Broadcasting Minister, briefed reporters on the decision, according to Upstox News.

The new prices

The release gives the 2027-28 MSP, the previous year’s MSP, the cost of production and the margin over cost for each crop, all in rupees per quintal:

  • Wheat: Rs 2,610, up Rs 25 from Rs 2,585. Cost of production Rs 1,264, margin 106%.
  • Barley: Rs 2,286, up Rs 136 from Rs 2,150. Cost Rs 1,447, margin 58%.
  • Gram: Rs 5,958, up Rs 83 from Rs 5,875. Cost Rs 3,751, margin 59%.
  • Lentil (masur): Rs 7,390, up Rs 390 from Rs 7,000. Cost Rs 3,854, margin 92%.
  • Rapeseed and mustard: Rs 6,613, up Rs 413 from Rs 6,200. Cost Rs 3,367, margin 96%.
  • Safflower: Rs 7,215, up Rs 675 from Rs 6,540. Cost Rs 4,810, margin 50%.

The cost figure is the all-India weighted average cost of production. The release says it covers all paid-out costs, including hired human labour, bullock or machine labour, rent for leased land, seeds, fertilisers, manures, irrigation charges, depreciation on implements and farm buildings, interest on working capital and diesel or electricity for pump sets, plus the imputed value of family labour. The government says the increases are in line with the Union Budget 2018-19 announcement to fix MSP at a level of at least 1.5 times this cost.

Diversification and the procurement record

The release says the government has in recent years offered higher MSPs for crops other than cereals, such as pulses and oilseeds, to promote their cultivation, and that the new prices will “incentivise crop diversification”. The wheat increase is smaller than last year’s: according to ANI, the wheat MSP rose by Rs 160 for the 2026-27 season.

The release also sets out procurement history. Wheat procurement in 2014-15 to 2025-26 totalled 3,715 lakh metric tonnes (LMT), against 2,254 LMT in 2004-05 to 2013-14. Procurement of all six rabi crops in the same two periods was 3,921 LMT and 2,302 LMT, so wheat accounts for most rabi procurement on the government’s own figures. MSP payments to wheat growers in 2014-15 to 2025-26 came to Rs 7.31 lakh crore, compared with Rs 2.56 lakh crore in the earlier period. Payments across the six crops came to Rs 8.36 lakh crore, against Rs 2.65 lakh crore.

The release does not give the expected fiscal cost of the new prices, procurement targets for the 2027-28 season, or any change to procurement arrangements for pulses and oilseeds.

TAD’s reading

  • For wheat traders and flour millers: A Rs 25 rise is the smallest of the six crops, so the support price does little on its own to lift the floor under the next wheat crop. Private pricing is likely to depend more on the harvest and on government stocks.
  • For oilseed processors and seed companies: The larger increases for mustard and safflower continue the policy signal towards oilseeds that the government describes. Whether that moves acreage depends on how much of these crops is actually bought at MSP, which the release does not address.
  • For input makers: Margins of 92% to 106% over cost for lentil, mustard and wheat are the government’s calculation using paid-out costs plus imputed family labour. Input companies planning rabi campaigns should treat them as policy benchmarks, not measures of farm income.
  • For FPOs: Pulse and oilseed producer organisations gain a higher reference price for negotiating with private buyers, but the benefit depends on procurement reach in their districts.