With no one to take them to mandis, most farm commodities fall below MSP

Labour shortage, transport issues and mandi closure disrupt supply. A large part of the crop hasn't been harvested and risks rotting away

Prices of most agricultural commodities have slipped below their minimum support price (MSP) because of lockdown-triggered labour and logistic problems, which created supply pressure on mandis near major production centres, even as remote agricultural produce market committees (APMCs) remain deserted.

While black gram (urad beans) at Karnataka’s Sedan mandi is selling at Rs  4,200 a quintal — at a 26 per cent discount to its MSP of Rs 5,700 a quintal — pearl millet and wheat in Etawah (Uttar Pradesh) and Saja (Chhattisgarh) are selling at a discount of 22 per cent and 30 per cent, respectively, to the MSPs.