Farmers Reject Government’s Proposal on MSP; Say It’s Not in Their Interest, to Resume Their March From Tomorrow
Image Source: India.com
In a major turn of events amidst the government-farmers tussle, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha faction has rejected the proposition the government had tabled. The farmers & the government had conducted a meeting in Chandigarh on Sunday after the third round of talks had not come to fruition. The rejected offer consisted of a 5-year contractual deal where the government would buy cotton, maize & pulses from the farmers at the Minimum Support Price (MSP). MSP works as a safety measure for the majority of farmers with inadequate incomes, ensuring a minimum price fence in a volatile supply-demand market environment.
Arjun Munda, Minister of State for Agriculture, and Minister of Commerce Piyush Goyal had met with the farmers and had assured a buying contract on the said crops for the next 5 years. They said, “Cooperative societies like the National Cooperative Consumers Federation (NCCF) & the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) will enter into a contract with those farmers who grow tur, urad, masoor dal, or maize for buying the crop at MSP for the next 5 years.” Goyal further stated, “This approach will save Punjab’s farming, improve the groundwater issue, save the land which is already under stress from getting barren.”
Speaking on the offer, Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who is spearheading the non-political faction of this protest with Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC), said that the proposal was not beneficial and doesn’t align with our interests, and therefore we are going to resume our protest. “It was basically a contract proposal and valid for those who would switch from paddy or wheat crops to pulses, maize, or cotton. Contract farming as a farming model has already failed and can’t guarantee sustainable income to farmers. The government’s proposal was for five crops out of 23 on which MSP is announced, and it was not justified to leave those who were not part of the government’s proposal.” Sarwan Singh Pandher called for a one-day parliament session to bring a law on MSP, saying “PM can call a one-day session in Parliament to bring legislation on MSP. All the opposition parties should clear their position that if the Centre brings a law on MSP, then they would vote for it in Parliament, Congress, Akali Dal, TMC, everyone should clear their stand.”
Apart from the non-political wing, the main branch of the SKM also denied the proposal and said that a five-year contract is only a diversion and an attempt at diluting the demand of MSP at ‘cost + 50% profit’ model which was promised by the BJP since they came into power.
Meanwhile, the MSP demand is still hanging in between, other demands like withdrawal of cases on farmers, compensation to those who died during previous protests, and prosecution of Ajay Mishra Teni in the Lakhimpur-Kheri case are yet to be addressed.
If we look back at how MSP has been for our farmers, in the 2018-19 budget, the Modi government had suggested that it should be at least 50% more than the average cost of production, but according to government data, the growth rate of MSP has declined since the Congress era.
Several agricultural experts call for crop diversification in states like Punjab & Haryana as their main cultivating crops are wheat and rice, which also cause stubble burning leading to more pollution. But if we look at reality, farmers barely get fair prices for other major crops. In 2018, oilseeds, pulses sold across government-approved market portals yielded lower prices than MSP. In 2021, several crops like groundnut, bajra, maize were purchased at a price lower than the MSP which disheartens and discourages farmers.
According to a report by Scroll, in 2022, the Punjab government had announced MSP of 7,725 quintals for moong dal, but data from the State Agricultural Marketing Board shows that in 2023, 96.5% of it was sold to private players, barely any of it around the MSP level.
An assured MSP for all can help incentivize crop diversification, especially for states like Punjab & Haryana suffering from the effects of groundwater level issues & pollution, among other things. The government should brainstorm on how it can be applied equitably while tackling any shortcomings that come with it.
The farmers have put their protest on hold and will resume their march to Delhi from tomorrow. As per India Today’s report, they are planning to conduct mass protests outside the residences of BJP leaders in Punjab for 3 days.
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