Why agriculture's abundance isn't bringing much relief to the farmer

Why new price support scheme for pulses and oilseeds this kharif season will only add to the state's inadequate procurement and storage mechanisms

Anil Puri Goswami is a farmer with an average landholding in Mandsaur district of Madhya Pradesh. Ever since the farmers’ agitation two years ago that prompted the state government to introduce a “price deficit” financing scheme, he has been trying to sell his pulse crop to state agencies at the mandated Minimum Support Price (MSP), which is higher than the going market rate.

So far, he has rarely managed to sell his entire produce through the state system, standing in long queues and waiting for hours. 

Still, on the logic that something is better than nothing, he is planning to