The KPCC Kisan Khet Mazdoor Congress unit has urged the Union government to fix a Minimum Support Price (MSP) that will ensure a profit of 50 per cent over the actual cost of production of all crops.
Addressing presspersons here on Wednesday, State President of the unit Sachin Meega said that the unit would urge the Union government to take steps to announce the MSP as recommended in the report of farm scientist M.S. Swaminathan.
Mr. Meega said that the BJP had, in its election manifesto, given the assurance that it would implement the Dr. Swaminathan committee recommendations including the one concerning the MSP. “However, now in the affidavit (WP SC no. 376/2011) submitted by the Under Secretary of the Union Agriculture Department to the Supreme Court, the government has said that if MSP is announced considering a 50 per cent profit over the cost of production, the market will lose its way. This clearly shows the dual standard of the Union government”, he said.
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He alleged that the instead of protecting the interests of the farmers, the Union government was following an unscientific MSP policy detrimental to the farmers. “It is just giving false assurance of doubling the farmers’ income”, he said.
Mr. Meega urged the government to make clear its stand with regard to the farmers, implement the Right to Remunerative Prices Act and give statutory powers to Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP) to ensure income security to the farmers.
He said that instead of helping the farmers, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was bent on helping industrialists and had increased the MSP by just 4.18 per cent for the financial year 2016-17.
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Mr. Meega said that the unit office-bearers were touring various districts of the State to create awareness among the farmers and would soon launch an agitation to press for their demands. KPCC office-bearers Rajashekhar Menasinakai, Babajan Mudhol and others were present.