Farmers Movement Archive

RSS farmers’ outfit to protest for law on MSP

Nagpur: Bhartiya Kisan Sangh (BKS), the farmers’ outfit of RSS, will hold protests seeking a law that makes purchase of farm produce at minimum support price (MSP) mandatory, even for private traders. The organization has also raised objections against some provisions in the three new farm laws that had led to farmers’ protests in Delhi. Addressing a press conference at RSS Smruti Mandir campus, BKS organizing secretary Dinesh Kulkarni said the protests will be held in 525 districts across the country on September 8. “The demands were discussed with the government, but there was no further action. The government appeared to be indifferent on all the farm issues, especially after the talks with protesting farm leaders (from Bharatiya Kisan Union) failed. The government was ready to accept almost all the demands but the outfits were only interested in the agitation,” Kulkarni told TOI over telephone. The September 8 protest will held symbolically, adhering to the Covid protocol. Further course of action will be decided after the first protest, Kulkarni said. On the three farm laws, Kulkarni said that as they they allow purchase outside the agriculture produce marketing committee (APMC), farmers cannot be left at the mercy of traders. The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (promotion and facilitation) Act allows trade even outside the designated APMC market. Under the new law, any person simply having a permanent account number (PAN) can purchase farm produce. “This can be a risky proposition and there should be stronger norms to ensure payment to farmers. This can be in the form of a bank guarantee or any similar mechanism,” said Kulkani The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act is biased against small and medium traders, said Kulkarni. The law calls for imposing stock limits on traders if the rates of non-perishable produce increase by 50% as compared to the preceding 12 months. It is 100% for perishable items. The limit is only applicable to small and medium traders; bigger players don’t have any restriction, he said. Kulkarni added, “Remunerative price is the key solution to the farmers’ problems and also their main demand. At present the MSP is merely on paper. Even as the price is declared for a number of crops, there is no mechanism to get the rate to farmers. There need to be strict laws, making it mandatory to buy not below the MSP.”

The Times of India

2021-08-20

Nagpur