Rice

A 46% June rainfall deficit and El Nino-driven IMD forecast of 90% of long-period average has cotton and oilseed farmers in Maharashtra and Gujarat holding back planting

The Cabinet raised paddy MSP by Rs 72 to Rs 2,441 per quintal for kharif 2026, but SKM launched a protest cycle from May 27 demanding a statutory Swaminathan C2+50% guarantee; the Supreme Court issued notice in April on the legal-guarantee petition

After a 14-month ban on non-basmati white rice exports that rattled global food markets in 2023-24, India progressively lifted all major restrictions; FY2025-26 exports are now forecast at 24 million tonnes, a record, and global prices are down 35%

PMGKAY's five-year extension locked in free grain for 813.5 million beneficiaries through December 2028; a CBDC food-token pilot launched in Puducherry in February 2026, and a draft NFSA amendment proposes shifting from household to per-person entitlements