Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Tuesday expressed the State’s strong protest against the Central policies that lead to high fertilizer prices.
Replying to a calling attention motion moved by former Agriculture Minister Mullakkara Ratnakaran, he said it was wrong for the Union government to surrender its powers to fix fair and affordable prices for fertilizers. Farmers were already in dire straits.
Mr. Chandy said the State government was doing everything it could for the sake of the farmers. Whenever things over which only the Centre had powers caused difficulties for the people of the State, the government in the State would try to do what was in its powers to lessen their impact. He mentioned as an instance the recent petrol price hike, to reduce the impact of which the State government gave up the duty part of the price increase.
He said the special Cabinet meeting held here on Monday had decided to increase the subsidies to the farmers. Paddy cultivators would from now on get Rs.4,000 a hectare by way of direct subsidy instead of the existing subsidy of Rs.1,500 a hectare. Subsidies for all other crops had been similarly increased. The government would soon scrutinise all factors involved in increasing the procurement price of paddy and announce a decision.
The Chief Minister said the State government’s commitment to the farmers was clear and he would seek a meeting with the Union Minister concerned to apprise him of the State’s concern over fertilizer price increase.
Earlier, while moving the calling attention motion, Mr. Ratnakaran said it was ironic that the farmers of the country had no power to fix the prices of their commodities, while the corporate companies could fix the prices of fertilizers as they wished. He said the prices of fertilizers had gone up by 30 to 60 per cent within the last one week.
