Farmers Movement Archive

PM Modi's promise kept within 5 days: Anurag Thakur on Cabinet clearing rollback of farm laws

Union minister Anurag Thakur on Wednesday said the Cabinet has completed the formality to repeal the three farm laws, as announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 19. The Cabinet has also decided to extend the government's foodgrain scheme, introduced during the pandemic, till March 2022. "In the upcoming Winter Session, the priority will be to take up these bills," the minister said on farm laws. The process will commence from the very first day of the winter session of Parliament, the minister said adding that Prime Minister's promise on November 19 has been fulfilled within five days of the announcement. “Many journalists were saying that the issue was not even on today's agenda. But the cabinet has already initiated the process,” the Union minister said. Following a year-long agitation of the farmers against the three farm laws which were passed by Parliament in September 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 19 announced that the government will take back the laws. Though the laws were introduced for the benefit of the farmers, the government failed to explain these benefits to them, the PM admitted.Wednesday's Cabinet meeting was the first following the announcement of PM Modi and it approved the Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 to repeal the three laws.The Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 seeks to repeal the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance, Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. The Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 has been listed for introduction and passage. It is among 26 new bills on the agenda of the government.The Prime Minister had also announced that the government will constitute a committee to work on a new framework for Minimum Support Price (MSP). As Anurag Thakur briefed about the Cabinet decisions, the Union minister did not divulge anything about the new committee and said everything will happen as the process mandates.

Hindustan Times

24-11-2021

India