Highlighting the immediate need for declaring region-specific minimum support price (MSP) for the agriculture produce, noted economist and chairperson of the Foundation for Agriculture Studies Madhura Swaminathan on Wednesday observed that the input costs were different from region to region and depended on the type of soil and availability of irrigation.
“It is unfair to declare MSP in a uniform manner. Small and marginal farmers are thrown into debts because of this practice, as the gaps are getting widened between the input costs and income from the yield,” she said while addressing the annual conference of the Andhra Pradesh Rythu Sangham, a farmers’ body affiliated to the All-India Kisan Sabha (AIKS).
Referring to the report of an in-depth study conducted by the foundation in 16 villages spread across 10 States during 2005 and 2010, Ms. Madhura said the daily income of small and marginal farmers was anything between ₹25 and ₹45 in many parts of the country.
“We have taken five acres of irrigated land or 15 acres of upland as a yardstick to identify the farmers as small and marginal. These farmers are spending high on the inputs, including water, compared to their counterparts who owned huge extents from the same villages,” she said.
Observing the mismatch between the studies on the farm sector conducted by the government in 2002 and in 2012, the economist highlighted the need for putting in place a scientific format that could enable the policy makers to understand the vagaries of the marginal farmers.
Climate change
“The other major issue being neglected by our governments and the policy makers is the climate change. The rise in temperature can spoil the standing crop, and we have witnessed it during our study. But even crop insurance is not making a mention about the factor,” she said.
Expressing concern over the small farmers, who were resorting to self-exploitation due to inequalities in the irrigation system and discrepancies in accessing the credit, she said the orientation of the policy makers towards agriculture should be changed completely.
A sea change in the MSP policy was the need of the hour to protect the peasantry.
AIKS secretary Bijoo Krishnan said the Centre failed in fulfilling its poll promise of bringing good days to the farmers.
