Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Congress MP Jairam Ramesh after the all-party assembly convened by the federal government forward of Parliament’s monsoon session, at Parliament Home in New Delhi on Sunday, July 21, 2024.
| Picture Credit score: ANI
A day earlier than the presentation of the Union funds, the Congress on Monday mentioned the Centre should make three vital bulletins of creating Minimal Help Value (MSP) a legal guarantee, repair MSP on the idea of the Swaminathan system and set up a everlasting fee to watch the implementation of farm mortgage waivers.
Congress common secretary in-charge Jairam Ramesh mentioned that of all of the “failures” of the central authorities, the “incompetence and ill-will” of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare is essentially the most damaging.
“Whereas the UPA had raised the MSP of wheat by 119% and that of rice by 134%, the Modi authorities has raised it by 47% and 50% respectively. This isn’t in any respect sufficient to maintain up with inflation and the rising costs of agricultural inputs,” Mr. Ramesh mentioned in an announcement.
He identified that farmers’ debt has elevated tremendously.
In line with the Nationwide Pattern Survey Workplace (NSSO), excellent loans have elevated by 58 per cent since 2013, he mentioned.
“Greater than half of the farmers are debt-ridden. Since 2014, we’ve seen greater than 1 lakh farmers die by suicide,” Ramesh mentioned.
“The Central Authorities must make three key bulletins for farm welfare within the upcoming Funds: Increase MSP for 22 crops that come underneath MSP, in step with the C2+50% system as advisable by the Swaminathan Fee,” he mentioned.
Mr. Ramesh mentioned the federal government should give a authorized standing to MSP and set up a system to implement it firmly, together with strategic procurement, higher regulation and value differential compensation.
“All it takes is dedication and braveness,” he mentioned.
Farm mortgage waivers
Mr. Ramesh additionally referred to as for the institution of a everlasting fee to evaluate the necessity for, assess the magnitude of, and monitor the implementation of farm mortgage waivers.
This much-needed step will present reduction to debt-ridden farmers, he mentioned in his assertion in Hindi.
“Do not forget that the central authorities has all the facility to take all three of those steps. It’s simply ready for the self-proclaimed non-biological Prime Minister to indicate some braveness and quit his stubbornness and take a call within the curiosity of farmers,” Ramesh mentioned.
“In November 2021, after the withdrawal of the three black farm legal guidelines, the self-proclaimed non-biological Prime Minister had introduced the formation of a committee to assessment issues associated to MSP. It took the federal government eight months to type the committee – and two years later, it has nonetheless not launched an interim report,” he mentioned, attacking PM Narendra Modi.
Had the federal government needed, the report would have been launched by now and MSP would have gotten authorized standing, he argued.
The Congress authorities in Telangana has began waiving farm loans for farmers within the State, he mentioned.
“This can present reduction to a complete of 40 lakh farmers on loans as much as Rs 2 lakh. In 2008, the UPA led by Dr. Manmohan Singh had waived off farm loans price Rs 72,000 crore. This benefited a lot of farmers, together with 54 lakh farmers of UP, 42 lakh farmers of Maharashtra, 8.9 lakh farmers of Haryana, 17.6 lakh farmers of Bihar and 6.66 lakh farmers of Jharkhand,” Ramesh mentioned.
“The federal government of the non-biological Prime Minister has waived off financial institution loans of Rs 16 lakh crore of capitalists. However however, regardless of receiving a report Rs 2.11 lakh crore dividend from the RBI this yr, it has not waived off even a single rupee of agricultural mortgage of the farmers,” he alleged.
“Will the self-proclaimed non-biological prime minister, who remains to be recovering from the injuries of the decisive private, political and ethical defeat on June 4, take these vital steps for agricultural welfare?” Ramesh mentioned.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will current the Funds on Tuesday, July 23, 2024.
