Punjab Cong Chief urges PM to raise MSP for Kharif paddy crop

New Delhi, Jun 13 (UNI) Punjab Pradesh Congress Chief Rajinder Kaur Bhattal today requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to raise the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of paddy to Rs 1000 per quintal in view of the increase in prices of farm inputs.

Nevertheless, the Central government's decision to give a hike of Rs 105 making the MSP at Rs 850 per quintal was certainly much higher than the slight raise of Rs 10-15 a quintal per year during the NDA rule, she said in a statement here.

As the paddy sowing season is in full swing in Punjab--the major contributor of foodgrains in the central pool-- appropriate increase in the MSP at the onset of the sowing would be appreciated by the farming community, Ms Bhattal said.

''Due to rise in the price of diesel and petroleum products the cost of inputs in agricultural sector has increased, so revision of MSP is also necessary,'' she added.

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