Swaraj Abhiyan president Yogendra Yadav launched a nationwide MSP satyagraha to expose the ground realities of minimum support price (MSP) implementation, by conducting a public hearing at the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) yard in Yadgir on Wednesday. Around 250 farmers, leaders and APMC officials were present.
The protesting leaders pointed out that the very purpose of mandi-to-mandi satyagraha was to unearth the harsh realities of MSP implementation at the ground level and bring it to the notice of the people and Union and State governments.
Lower than MSP
Farmers’ testimonies and AMPC officials’ admissions established that farmers were forced to sell their crops at prices much lower than MSP declared by the government. Red gram (toor) was sold at ₹3,885 a quintal against the MSP of ₹6,000 (Union government’s MSP of ₹5,450 plus State government bonus of ₹550), groundnut at ₹3,821 against the MSP of ₹4,450 and Bengal gram (Chana) at ₹3,360 against the MSP of ₹4,400 on Wednesday at Yadgir APMC.
“In our public hearing, we found that most of the farmers are selling their crops at prices much lower than the MSP. As per our estimation, farmers in the country would have to incur a loss of around ₹32,000 crore in kharif season and another ₹6,000 crore in rabi season thanks to the improper implementation of MSP under Price Support Scheme.
It is nothing but a government-sponsored loot of farmers,” Mr. Yadav told The Hindu .
He also termed the Centre’s budgetary announcement of 50% returns over the cost of cultivation a hoax as the very definition of cost of cultivation was conveniently and cunningly redefined to lower the MSP.
Procurement quantity capped
Pointing out anomalies and irrationality in red gram procurement, Mr. Yadav criticised the Centre for pushing the farming community into distress sale by capping the procurement quantity.
“The total expected yield of red gram this year is around 90 lakh quintals. However, the Union government had capped the procurement quantity at 16.5 lakh quintals. After consistent protests by farmers, the cap was revised twice to make the total procurement quantity 36.4 lakh quintals. It means that more than half the crop would have to still be sold in the open market at a price lower than MSP. Capping the procurement quantity is defeating the very purpose of market intervention by the State to save the farmers from price fall and resultant distress sale,” Mr. Yadav said.
The grassroots finding would be compiled in a report after each public hearing at APMC yard and submitted to CM of the concerned State and all concerned authorities of Union government.
The leaders declared that the next satyagraha would be held at Adoni in Andhra Pradesh, on Thursday, before moving to Tandur in Telangana, Sri Ganganagar in Rajasthan, Rewari in Haryana, Rudrapur in Uttarakhand, and other places.
