Centre to 'immediately' start procuring kharif crops from Punjab, Haryana
A day after farmers went on a ‘Bharat Bandh’ to protest against the three farm bills passed by the government in the monsoon session of Parliament, the Centre has announced that it will advance the procurement of the kharif crops of paddy and rice from Punjab and Haryana, the two states where the agitation has been the strongest.
A day after farmers went on a ‘Bharat Bandh’ to protest against the three farm bills passed by the government in the monsoon session of Parliament, the Centre has announced that it will advance the procurement of the kharif crops of paddy and rice from Punjab and Haryana, the two states where the agitation has been the strongest.
It said orders have already been issued to start procuring the crops “immediately” from Saturday (September 26) from the two states against the earlier plan of procuring them from October 1.
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The kharif marketing season (KMS) for paddy and rice is scheduled to commence in all procuring states from October 1, the ministry of consumer affairs, food & public distribution said.
“The state procuring agencies, including FCI, are in a state of readiness for smoothly undertaking procurement operations. However, in view of early arrival of paddy in the ‘mandis’ of Haryana and Punjab, the government of India has approved the commencement of procurement operations for paddy/rice immediately in both these states… with effect from September 26,” it said.
This is to help farmers to expeditiously sell their produce at the minimum support price (MSP), the ministry said.
Farmers in most parts of the country, especially in Punjab and Haryana, have been agitating against the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020; Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020, and Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020 fearing that these are the first steps towards the abolition of the MSP.
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The first bill allows farmers to explore markets outside APMC mandis. This, the government says, will help farmers get the best price for their produce. Farmers, on the other hand, say this will result in corporatisation, leaving them at the mercy of market forces.