Farmers Movement Archive

Congress-ruled states speak in different voices on making MSP guaranteed floor price

NEW DELHI: Congress, while opposing the Centre on recently enacted farm laws, might have pitched for giving legal guarantee to procurement of farm produce at minimum support price (MSP) but states governed by the party — Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan — do not appear to be on the same page while handling the key demand of farmers through their proposed state legislations. These three states have passed farm bills seeking to keep their farmers out of the ambit of the central laws, but there is no uniformity among them on treating MSP as a legally guaranteed floor price. While Punjab’s bill speaks about MSP guarantee only for wheat and paddy, leaving other crops at the mercy of private traders, Rajasthan's bills refer to MSP guarantee only in case of contract farming. The Chhattisgarh bill, on the other hand, remains vague on the issue of giving legal guarantee to MSP and deals with issues in a very subjective manner by declaring the entire state as a market for selling farm produce. Though all three states, while moving the bills in the assemblies, projected them as an effort to protect the interests of farmers, none of them has actually met the demand of protesting farmers on making MSP a legally guaranteed floor price. “None of these states have taken up the issue of MSP appropriately. If you look at Punjab’s bill, it talks only about wheat and paddy. The relevant section in the bill says if anyone 'compels' or 'exerts pressure' on a farmer to sell his/her produce below MSP, then such person will be deemed to have committed an offence. Using the word ‘compel’ makes it very subjective. How will you determine it? It defeats the very purpose of the bill,” said V M Singh, national convenor of All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC). Referring to Rajasthan’s bill, Singh said it was meant to ensure MSP only in the case of contract farming. “Why can’t you make a provision saying nothing in the state can be sold below MSP?” he asked, underlining the gaps in the bills which will, however, become law only after getting the governor’s assent. Officials in the agriculture ministry said the government would examine these bills to see whether they violated any central laws. “Meanwhile, there is a plan to talk to stakeholders and farmers’ representatives over the benefits of the three central farm laws,” an official said.

The Times of India

2020-11-10

India