Kolkata, Feb 25: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on Wednesday, claimed that the move by the Union Cabinet to approve a major hike in the minimum support price (MSP) of raw jute, will benefit lakhs of farmers in West Bengal.
BJP’s Information Technology (IT) cell Chief and the party’s central observer for West Bengal, Amit Malviya, in a social media statement on Wednesday afternoon, claimed that the Union Government’s decision to fix the MSP for raw jute (TD-3 grade) at Rs 5,925 per quintal for the 2025-27 season, has ensured a guaranteed return of 61.8 per cent over the all-India weighted average cost of production.
“This Rs 275 per quintal increase reflects the government’s unwavering commitment to farmers’ welfare,” Malviya added.
In his social media post, Malviya had also outlined how the MSP for raw jute had been increased several times since 2014, when the National Democratic Alliance came to power..
“Since 2014, the MSP for jute has increased nearly 2.5 times, demonstrating a consistent and measurable focus on strengthening the agricultural sector. Between 2014 and 2026, Rs 1,342 crore has been directly transferred to jute farmers, a significant rise compared to Rs 441 crore disbursed in the preceding decade,” Malviya added.
He also pointed out that with West Bengal contributing over 80 per cent of India’s total jute production, this decision directly benefits lakhs of farmers and workers, strengthening rural incomes and securing livelihoods across the state.
“I sincerely thank Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi for this decisive step that reaffirms the government’s commitment to our farmers and to the prosperity of West Bengal,” Malviya added.
Political observers feel that the Union Government’s decision to hike the MSP of raw jute has provided the BJP a weapon to counter the Trinamool Congress constant propaganda that the Centre was all set to systemically paralyse the jute sector in the country.
Last month, Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha member, Ritabrata Banerjee, wrote to the Union Textiles Minister, Giriraj Singh, accusing the Centre of neglecting the prime task of coming out with a raw jute stabilisation or buffer framework policy defining reserve norms, transparent release triggers, and time-bound stock rotation linked to minimum support price procurement.
–IANS