Earlier this month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a Rs 11,000-crore National Mission on Edible Oils, with special focus on oil palm, in order to boost domestic production of the largest component of India’s edible oil imports and make the country self-sufficient in the cooking medium.

       The plan The Mission, according to a union cabinet decision of August 18, has approved a benchmark purchase price for oil palm along the lines of the existing Minimum Support Price (MSP) for other crops. This price is to be calculated by the Commission for Agriculture Costs and Prices ...