Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh on Wednesday said that the Centre will procure chillies at Rs. 6,200 a quintal, bringing some relief to farmers who are protesting seeking remunerative price for their produce.
The Union Minister’s statement followed two meetings with Union Housing, Urban Development and Information and Broadcasting Ministers. The Telangana government has already represented to the Centre seeking its help for the distressed chilli farmers in the State.
Last week, the Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment Bandaru Dattatreya had said that the Centre is ready to extend its support to chilli farmers with a suitable price for their produce under market intervention scheme (MIS) if the State government forwards a proposal.
“As soon as I return to New Delhi on Monday I will meet Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh and request him to consider implementation of MIS in respect of chilli,” he said addressing the media in Telangana on Sunday.
“The Narendra Modi government has given Rs. 750 crore to Telangana from Price Stabilisation Fund for the purchase of toor (red gram) and the State government has spent Rs. 736 crore,” he had said.
Mr. Dattatreya had taken exception to the reported statement of the TRS that announcing minimum support price for chilli was the responsibility of Centre and said that had the proposals been sent to it, the Centre would have taken the decision.
Mr. Dattatreya said that the BJP-led NDA government was committed to doubling the income of farmers by 2022 and was not indulging in politics in extending assistance to them.
TS unhappy
HYDERABAD Special Correspondent adds: The Telangana government was not happy with the announcement by Union Agriculture Minister Radhamohan Singh that the Centre would purchase chilli from farmers at Rs. 6,200 a quintal as it was not a satisfactory package.
The amount fell short of two proposals put forth by the Telangana government to bail out the distressed farmers. One comprised fixing the price at the reference rate of Rs. 8,000 a quintal and compensating the farmers with not more than Rs. 1,500 a quintal based on quality if the amount fell short. The second proposal was to purchase at a minimum rate of Rs. 7,000 a quintal plus extend hamali charges. Both were ignored, a senior official said.
He added that the package would be reviewed on Thursday to assess its benefit to farmers. If need be, the Centre would be requested to revise its stand. The TS and A.P. governments had submitted different proposals to the Centre.
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