Jute MSP Raised to ₹5,335/quintal: JCI Starts Procurement

Kolkata, Jul 1 (PTI) The Jute Corporation of India (JCI) has commenced Minimum Support Price (MSP) operations for raw jute from Monday, a senior official said.

The government has raised the MSP for raw jute by Rs 285 to Rs 5,335 per quintal for the 2024-25 season.

In the current season (2023-24), the government has procured a record amount of over 7.24 lakh bales of raw jute, costing over Rs 500 crore, and benefiting around 1.70 lakh farmers.

This is a significant increase compared to the 2.3 lakh bales procured in 2022-23.

Despite projections of reduced production by the Expert Committee on Jute (ECJ), the price of the golden fibre has plummeted below Rs 5,000 per quintal. In contrast, the MSP for the 2024-25 season is Rs 5,335 per quintal, due to very low demands for the raw material by jute mills.

This significant drop in prices is primarily attributed to reduced orders for GBT (Gunny Burlap Textile) bags by the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and State Procuring Agencies (SPAs). The Mills are sitting on huge old stock, sources said.

According to JCI General Manager K Mazumdar, there is no restriction on the quantity of procurement by the agency.

He stated that 110 direct JCI procurement centres are operational, and an additional 25 outsourced centres are active.

The JCI's MSP procurement is directly from farmers, protecting them from distress sales.

Mazumdar also mentioned that stakeholders and farmers can use the "Patsan app" to access MSP operation details, including support in various areas like production.