'Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana' of Madhya Pradesh is related to which sector?
- (a)Women development
- (b)Agriculture
- (c)Child development
- (d)Industry
Correct — B, Agriculture. The Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana ('Price Difference Payment Scheme') was launched by the Madhya Pradesh government in 2017 to support farmers. When the market (mandi) price of a notified crop falls below a government-set support/model price, the scheme pays the farmer the difference directly — a price-deficiency payment. It therefore belongs squarely to the agriculture sector.
- (a)Women development — The scheme has no women-specific welfare component; it targets farmers selling notified crops.
- (c)Child development — It is unrelated to child welfare or nutrition programmes.
- (d)Industry — It supports agricultural producers, not industrial units — the payment offsets low crop prices, not industrial costs.
'Bhavantar' means 'price difference.' Under a price-deficiency payment scheme, the government does not physically buy the crop; instead, if the farmer sells below a benchmark price (linked to the Minimum Support Price or a model rate), the state transfers the shortfall to the farmer's bank account. Madhya Pradesh piloted this mainly for oilseeds and pulses to shield farmers from price crashes after a good harvest.
Read the scheme's purpose, not its unusual name. It compensates farmers for low mandi prices — a farm-income support measure — so 'Agriculture' is the sector. The other options are welfare or industry areas the scheme does not touch.
- Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana = 'Price Difference Payment Scheme,' launched by Madhya Pradesh in 2017.
- It pays farmers the gap between a support/model price and the actual market sale price.
- It is a price-deficiency payment — the crop is not procured by the government.
- It was introduced mainly for oilseeds and pulses to protect farmers from price falls.
A price-deficiency payment to farmers — an agriculture-sector scheme, not welfare or industry.
- Being misled by the unfamiliar name into a non-farm sector
- Assuming the government buys the crop — it only pays the price gap
MPPSC asks which sector/purpose a state scheme serves; UPSC asks the mechanism of MSP and price-deficiency payments. Anchor: 'Bhavantar' = price gap paid to farmers.
Consider the following statements: 1. The Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices recommends the Minimum Support Prices for 32 crops. 2. The Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution has launched the National Food Security Mission. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- (a) 1 only
- (b) 2 only
- (c) Both 1 and 2
- (d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Same concept — the Minimum Support Price framework (recommended by the CACP) that underpins farm price policy; Madhya Pradesh's Bhavantar scheme pays farmers the gap between this support price and the market rate.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Under a price-deficiency payment scheme like Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana, the farmer receives:
- (a)the full market value of the crop from the government
- (b)the difference between a benchmark price and the actual sale price
- (c)a fixed cash grant regardless of the sale
- (d)a subsidy on seeds and fertilizer
Answer(b) the difference between a benchmark (support) price and the actual sale price.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Minimum Support Price (MSP), which serves as a benchmark for such schemes, is recommended by:
- (a)NITI Aayog
- (b)the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP)
- (c)the Reserve Bank of India
- (d)the Food Corporation of India
Answer(b) the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP).