Farmers Movement Archive

Govt must ensure minimum support price: Kisan Sabha

PUNE: All India Kisan Sabha’s state unit general secretary Ajit Navale said on Friday that the central government should now take an early decision on bringing in an enactment to ensure legal guarantee for the minimum support price (MSP) for various crops. He said the farmers who died in the struggle to get the three contentious laws repealed deserved a salute after the government’s announcement. “It’s a victory for more than 500 farmers’ organisations who fought collectively against these laws.” he added. Sachin Holkar, agriculture activist, said, “Today’s announcement proves that the farm laws were against farmers and hence the government had to repeal the laws. Now, the MSP is the most crucial thing for farmers. If farmers get guaranteed rates for crops, they won’t be dependent on the government. Often, farmers had to sell their harvest/ produce at very low cost due to the existing system of open auction in markets. This method is inappropriate and hence many farmers are economically poor.” Anil Ghanwat, a member of the committee appointed by the Supreme Court to listen to the grievances of farmers relating to farm laws, termed the government’s announcement an “unfortunate step” for farmers. Ghanwat, who is also the president of the Shetkari Sanghatana, said, “The government surrendered eventually. Because of the old farm laws, the farmers were not getting any benefit and were driven to take extreme steps, like committing suicides. Our panel had addressed loopholes/drawbacks of the laws. However, without studying our recommendations, the laws will now be repealed. No party in power will ever dare to reform farm laws.”

The Times of India

2021-11-20

Pune