Andhra Pradesh is getting a raw deal in fixing of minimum support price (MSP) for different crops. YSRC Farmers’ Wing state president M.V.S. Nagireddy said here on Sunday said that Andhra Pradesh, where the cost of agricultural labour was high, was the biggest loser because of the Central government’s cumulative average formula for fixing of MSP. While the cost per acre was Rs. 3,500 for Punjab and Haryana the cost in Andhra Pradesh was between Rs. 7,000 and Rs. 8,000.
This system was favourable to states where the cost of production was low.
While agriculture was a State subject, the Centre was calling all the shots and fixing MSP with total disregard for the Swaminathan Commission recommendations. The cost of production was low in Punjab and Haryana because of mechanisation, he said.
He said farmers in Andhra Pradesh were going through the worst crisis ever because of poor rains and the State government’s failure to fulfil its promise. While Prakasam district had 54 per cent deficit in rainfall, Anantapur and Kadapa had 51 per cent deficit, Guntur and Nellore 48 per cent and East Godavari 46 per cent deficit. Krishna and West Godavari registered 43 per cent deficit. This led to a severe reduction in the sowing of water–intensive crops. Cotton was sown in 160.47 per cent and maize in 121.8 per cent.
Farmers of Kurnool went for cotton in an additional 1,86,016 hectares and in Anantapur it was sowed in an additional 52,868 hectares because of the rain deficit, he said. Loss to farmers in terms of incentives from the Centre and bank interest on loans, until their loans were waived off in a phased manner, was Rs. 8,400 crore, Mr. Nagireddy said.
