New Delhi: A 29-member committee constituted by Modi government To review a slew of agricultural policies is fast becoming a sore point for farmer unions and the Punjab government.
After a year-long protest by farmer groups, the Narendra Modi government last November cancelled He had three agricultural laws starring in 2020. During talks with farmer unions, it had agreed to set up a committee to look into the demand for making Minimum Support Price (MSP) a legal right.
Eight months later, on 12 July this year, it set up a mega panel to consider a wide range of agricultural policies – from making the MSP regime transparent and effective to suggesting ways to diversify cropping patterns. The committee is also tasked with looking at ways to encourage ‘Indian Natural Farming System’and to review existing micro irrigation schemes.
The chairman of the committee is former Agriculture Secretary Sanjay Agarwal. Agricultural laws were introduced when he was in office.
United Kisan Morcha (SKM), which led anti-agriculture law The protest at Delhi’s doorstep, has refused to be part of the panel, which it says is populated with “loyalists of the government and advocates of reform laws”.
Punjab, one of the largest suppliers of food grains to the public food stock procured at MSP, has strongly objected to the composition of the committee. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mannu in the early hours of Wednesday Slammed Government for not including a representative of the Government of Punjab in the panel.
Four states – Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Karnataka and Sikkim – are part of the 29-member panel.
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future struggle
On the MSP front, the panel has been asked to suggest mechanisms to make the price support price more effective and transparent for farmers across India.
Further, it has been asked to submit its recommendation on ways to strengthen the existing agricultural marketing system “to ensure higher prices to the farmers as per the changing requirements of the country … by taking advantage of domestic and export opportunities”.
According to some experts ThePrint spoke to, a change in the existing procurement system in states like Punjab and the expansion of MSP-based procurement in other states – arising out of possible recommendations by the committee at a later date – could lead to a political conflict between the common man. Party (AAP) ruled Punjab and Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre.
At present, most of the rice and wheat grown by farmers in Punjab and Haryana is procured by the central government at support prices. When the government introduced reform laws in 2020, farmers in these states feared weak state procurement at guaranteed prices and demanded the laws be repealed.
Ajay Jakhar, chairman, said, “Given the composition of the committee, it appears that the government is making way for states like Punjab to do away with the open procurement policy and pass on the benefit of support price to other states.” farmers body Former head of India Krishak Samaj and Punjab Farmers Commission told imprint.
Jakhar said that apart from Punjab, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh, which contribute significantly to the public food stock, they have no representation in the committee.
wide ambit
committee, which none is given The deadline for submitting your recommendation is a broad mandate.
The mega panel is expected to “promote zero-budget based (natural) farming, change cropping patterns keeping in mind the changing needs of the country and make MSP more effective and transparent”. According to a government notification.
Political analyst and member of United Kisan Morcha Yogendra Yadav said, “Many of these issues have been looked into by committees which have already submitted their reports to the government.,
These previous committees include the ‘Doubling of Farmers’ Income’ panel, which presented a 14-volume report good in 2018, and a High level panel led by former Himachal CM Shanta Kumarwho presented report good On public food procurement reforms in 2015.
In addition, a committee under the chairmanship of Ramesh Chand, who is presently a member of NITI Aayog, presented report good On review of methodology of MSP calculation in 2015.
“While the latest committee may make way for backdoor entry of repealed agricultural laws in future, it may also end up as a non-starter. It’s like a tick on the box… The Prime Minister had announced, so it is.”
Two members of the committee spoke to ThePrint and said they were not consulted before being included in the panel. Eight days after the release of the notification, both are waiting for the official notification that they are now members of the panel.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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