The economic cost of food grains to the Food Corporation of India is Minimum Support Price and bonus (if any) paid to the farmers plus

This source reproduces the exact question listing possible components of FCI's economic cost, showing choices that include 'interest cost only', 'transportation cost only', and 'procurement incidentals and distribution cost'.

A student could use the multiple-choice options to infer that other items (transport, procurement incidentals, distribution) are commonly considered candidates, so the 'interest only' formulation is questionable.

Another book repeats the same MCQ wording, again enumerating alternatives (transport, interest, procurement incidentals, godown charges) for what might be included in economic cost.

Seeing consistent alternative choices across sources suggests the textbook consensus that economic cost likely involves more than MSP+interest and prompts checking procurement/handling cost items.

Discusses 'high carrying costs' from storage of massive food stocks and links storage/stockpiling to costs borne by government.

A student could extend this to suspect that storage/carrying and distribution costs (not just interest) form part of economic cost for FCI.

Describes FCI procurement operations and open-ended procurement at MSP, implying associated operational/handling activities (purchase centres, handing over stock) are part of the procurement process.

From procurement procedures a student could infer associated procurement incidentals and handling charges are plausible components of economic cost beyond MSP and interest.

Defines MSP and contrasts it with Central Issue Price (CIP) used for distribution, indicating distinct price layers (procurement vs distribution) in the system.

A student might extend this distinction to reason that economic cost likely includes procurement (MSP) plus other costs tied to moving grains into the central pool and issuing them (transport/distribution), not only interest.

Gives an exam-style definition listing 'economic cost of food grains to the FCI is Minimum Support Price and bonus (if any) paid to the farmers plus' and then presents multiple options including 'procurement incidentals and distribution cost'.

A student could treat the listed options as alternative formulations and check official FCI/DoFPD definitions or past UPSC keys to see which option was accepted.

Repeats the same question/choices, again showing 'procurement incidentals and distribution cost' as one of the candidate components of economic cost.

Use this repeated formulation to prioritize verifying whether official accounting definitions of FCI economic cost include procurement incidentals and distribution costs.

Defines MSP clearly as the price at which purchases are made by government agencies (including FCI) for the central pool, establishing MSP as a core procurement outlay.

Combine this with knowledge that 'economic cost' would include procurement outlays to infer MSP is plausibly part of economic cost and then look up FCI cost components.

Describes FCI procurement operations (purchase centres, open-ended procurement, payment by FCI), implying additional procurement-related expenses beyond MSP exist (logistics, handling).

A student could extend this by listing typical procurement incidentals (weighing, sampling, handling, storage transfer) and check if such items are treated as part of 'economic cost' in official documents.

Notes that FCI purchases at MSP and creates buffer stocks, and discusses storage/carrying costs — pointing to distribution/storage/handling as real costs associated with procurement.

Combine this with a map of supply flows (surplus states to consumption centers) to reason that distribution costs materially affect FCI's total economic outlay and should be considered when judging the statement.

Presents an exam question that frames 'economic cost of food grains to the FCI' as 'MSP and bonus paid to the farmers plus' and offers alternative completions including 'procurement incidentals and charges for godowns'.

A student could treat the listed options as plausible components and check policy texts or budget line-items for FCI to see which of those listed items (procurement incidentals, godown charges, distribution cost, transportation, interest) are commonly aggregated into 'economic cost'.

Another source repeats the same MCQ wording and the same set of candidate additions (including 'procurement incidentals and charges for godowns'), reinforcing that these are standard proposed components in exam/teaching materials.

Use this repetition as a cue to inspect official FCI accounting practice or government definitions of 'economic cost' to confirm which of the enumerated items are officially included.

Describes FCI procurement procedures and that FCI pays at MSP and handles centralized procurement and transfer to central pool—showing FCI bears procurement-related activities and costs.

Combine this with the MCQ options to infer that procurement incidentals (costs of purchase centers, testing, weighing, etc.) plausibly form part of FCI's economic cost and should be checked in FCI cost breakdowns.

Defines buffer stock procured by FCI and states farmers are paid MSP, linking MSP payments to FCI's stock creation function.

A student could reason that since FCI procures for buffer stocks at MSP, the total economic cost would logically add the other costs of creating and holding that stock (procurement incidentals, storage), and so should verify official cost components.

Notes high carrying/storage costs from massive food stocks and mentions freezing MSP, highlighting that storage/carrying (godown) costs are significant in the FCI context.

Use this point to hypothesize that charges for godowns (storage/carrying cost) are likely treated as part of the economic cost and then look for explicit accounting or budget references to confirm inclusion.