What happened: PM-AASHA consolidates MSP-linked price support and market interventions
The Government of India introduced and runs Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay Sanrakshan Abhiyan (PM-AASHA) as a flagship price-support framework for farmers. PM-AASHA aims to strengthen implementation of the Minimum Support Price (MSP)—the government-announced price floor for certain farm crops—while reducing farmers’ distress sales when market prices fall. PM-AASHA also aims to support consumer food price stability by using buffer stocks and market interventions when prices become volatile.
What PM-AASHA includes: four components that target different problems
PM-AASHA is implemented through four broad components. Each component is designed according to crop and market conditions, so that support can be procurement-based for some crops and payment-based or market-intervention-based for others.
1) Price Support Scheme (PSS): procurement at MSP when market prices fall
The Price Support Scheme (PSS) focuses on procurement of specific crops at MSP when the market price during harvest falls below MSP. PSS mainly covers pulses, oilseeds, and copra.