Parliament Question: Impact of the increase in Cost of Agricultural Inputs

O.I.H. GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5107 TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 24TH MARCH, 2026 IMPACT OF THE INCREASE IN COST OF AGRICULTURAL INPUTS 5107. SHRI KULDEEP INDORA: Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ(cid:874)ष और (cid:873)कसान क(cid:227)याण म(cid:287)ं ी be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government has made any assessment of the impact of the increase in the cost of agricultural inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, diesel, petrol and agricultural machinery on small and marginal farmers during the past few years; (b) the comparative details of the percentage increase in the prices of major agricultural inputs as seeds, fertilizers, diesel, petrol, pesticides and agricultural machinery, during the last ten years, year-wise and the corresponding produce such as wheat, paddy, rice, pulses and oilseeds during the same period; (c) whether the rapid increase in input costs has adversely affected the profitability and sustainability of agriculture; and (d) the long-term strategy and proposed measures of the Government to ensure income security for farmers, reduce the cost production and ease the financial burden particularly on small and marginal farmers? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE FOR AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ(cid:874)ष एवं (cid:873)कसान क(cid:227)याण रा(cid:207)य मं(cid:287)ी (SHRI RAMNATH THAKUR) (a) to (c): Every year, Government fixes Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for 22 mandated agricultural crops for the country as a whole, based on the recommendations of Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP), after considering the views of State Governments and Central Ministries/Departments concerned. The 22 mandated crops include 14 Kharif crops viz. paddy, jowar, bajra, maize, ragi, tur (arhar), moong, urad, groundnut, soyabean, sunflower, sesamum, nigerseed, cotton and 6 Rabi crops viz. wheat, barley, gram, masur (lentil), rapeseed & mustard, safflower and two commercial crops viz. jute and copra. While recommending MSPs, CACP considers important factors like cost of production, overall demand-supply conditions, domestic and international prices, inter-crop price parity, terms of trade between agricultural and non-agricultural sectors, the likely effect on the rest of the economy, besides ensuring rational utilization of land, water and other production resources, including all-India weighted average cost of production. Within the cost of production, CACP considers all costs in a comprehensive manner which include all paid out costs such as those incurred on account of hired human labour,bullock labour/machine labour, rent paid for leased in land, expenses incurred on use of material inputs like seeds, fertilizers, manures, irrigation charges, depreciation on implements and farm buildings, interest on working capital, diesel/electricity for operation of pump sets etc., miscellaneous expenses and imputed value of family labour. As per CACP reports, the details of last 10 years all-India weighted average cost of production of wheat, paddy, pulses and oilseeds included in MSP crops are given at Annexure I. The details of last 10 years production of wheat, paddy, pulses and oilseeds included in MSP crops are given at Annexure II. Government, in its Union Budget for 2018-19, had made an announcement to keep MSP at a level of minimum one and half times of the cost of production as a pre-determined principle. Accordingly, MSPs for all mandated Kharif, Rabi and other commercial crops have been fixed with a margin of at least 50 percent over weighted average cost of production. (d): To ensure income security for farmers, including small and marginal farmers, Government of lndia implements various schemes/ programmes, such as given below: 1. National Food Security and Nutrition Mission (NFSNM) 2. National Mission on Edible Oils (NMEO)-Oil Palm 3. National Mission on Edible Oils (NMEO)-Oilseeds 4. National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF) 5. Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) 6. Soil Health & Fertility (SH&F) 7. Rainfed Area Development (RAD) 8. Agroforestry 9. Crop Diversification Programme (CDP) 10. Sub-Mission on Agriculture Extension (SMAE) 11. Sub-Mission on Seed and Planting Material (SMSP) 12. Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) 13. National Bamboo Mission 14. National Bee Keeping and Honey Mission (NBHM) 15. Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region 16. Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) 17. Integrated Scheme for Agriculture Marketing (ISAM) 18. Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) 19. Pradhan Mantri Kisan Maan Dhan Yojana (PM-KMY) 20. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY)/ Restructured Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (RWBCIS) 21. Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay Sanrakshan Abhiyan (PM-AASHA) 22. Modified Interest Subvention Scheme (MISS) 23. Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) 24. Formation and Promotion of 10,000 new Farmer Producers Organizations (FPOs) 25. Agri Fund for Start-Ups & Rural Enterprises (AgriSURE) 26. Sub-Mission on Agriculture Mechanization (SMAM) 27. Digital Agriculture MissionAnnexure-I Annexure referred to in reply to part (b) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No.5107 due to reply on 24.03.2026 All India Weighted Average Cost of Production of Wheat, paddy, pulses and oilseeds included in MSP crops (in ₹ / quintal) S.no. Commodity 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21 2021-22 2022-23 2023-24 2024-25 1 Paddy 1020 1045 1117 1166 1208 1245 1293 1360 1455 1533 2 Wheat 744 785 797 817 866 923 960 1008 1065 1128 3 Tur 3237 3241 3318 3432 3636 3796 3886 4131 4444 4761 4 Gram 1902 2124 2241 2461 2637 2801 2866 3004 3206 3400 5 Urad 3455 3584 3265 3438 3477 3660 3816 4155 4592 4883 6 Moong 3993 4065 4286 4650 4699 4797 4850 5167 5705 5788 7 Lentil 1866 2015 2174 2366 2532 2727 2864 3079 3239 3405 8 Groundnut 3314 3371 3159 3260 3394 3515 3699 3873 4251 4522 9 Sesamum 4132 4188 4067 4166 4322 4570 4871 5220 5755 6178 10 Nigerseed 3146 3366 3912 3918 3960 4462 4620 4858 5156 5811 11 Soybean 1770 1852 2121 2266 2473 2587 2633 2805 3029 3261 12 Sunflower 3282 3479 3481 3592 3767 3921 4010 4113 4505 4853 13 Rapeseed & 1504 1702 1871 2123 2212 2323 2415 2523 2670 2855 Mustard 14 Safflower 3025 3057 3049 3125 3294 3470 3551 3627 3765 3807 Source: Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP)Annexure-II Annexure referred to in reply to part (b) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No.5107 due to reply on 24.03.2026 Production of Wheat, paddy, pulses and oilseeds included in MSP crops (in LMT) S.no. Crop 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21 2021-22 2022-23 2023-24 2024-25 1 Paddy 1566.12 1645.47 1691.37 1747.17 1783.05 1865.52 1942.07 2036.33 2067.38 2252.76 2 Wheat 922.88 985.10 998.70 1035.96 1078.61 1095.86 1077.42 1105.54 1132.92 1179.45 Total Cereals 2352.18 2519.81 2595.97 2631.33 2744.79 2852.79 2883.14 3036.28 3080.52 3320.50 3 Tur 25.61 48.73 42.90 33.15 38.92 43.16 42.20 33.12 34.17 36.24 4 Gram 70.58 93.78 113.79 99.38 110.78 119.11 135.44 122.67 110.39 111.14 5 Urad 19.45 28.32 34.92 30.60 20.81 22.30 27.76 26.31 23.19 22.42 6 Moong 15.93 21.65 20.23 24.55 25.09 30.85 31.66 36.76 31.03 42.44 7 Lentil 9.76 12.24 16.22 12.28 11.03 14.94 12.69 15.59 17.91 16.54 Total Pulses 163.23 231.29 254.16 220.76 230.25 254.63 273.02 260.58 242.46 256.83 8 Groundnut 67.33 74.62 92.53 67.27 99.52 102.44 101.35 102.97 101.80 119.42 9 Sesamum 8.50 7.47 7.55 6.89 6.57 8.17 7.89 8.02 8.47 8.93 10 Nigerseed 0.74 0.85 0.70 0.45 0.41 0.42 0.33 0.29 0.27 0.40 11 Soybean 85.70 131.59 109.33 132.68 112.26 126.10 129.87 149.85 130.62 152.68 12 Sunflower 2.96 2.51 2.22 2.16 2.13 2.28 2.50 3.63 1.73 2.36 13 Rapeseed & 67.97 79.17 84.30 92.56 91.24 102.10 119.63 126.43 132.59 126.67 Mustard 14 Safflower 0.53 0.94 0.55 0.25 0.44 0.36 0.61 0.90 0.50 0.43 Total Oilseeds 252.51 312.76 314.59 315.22 332.19 359.46 379.63 413.55 396.69 429.89 Source: Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare ******