Centre must repeal new farm laws: Niranjan Reddy

Agriculture Minister Niranjan Reddy said the new farm laws were not beneficial for farmers and instead, were aimed at bringing essential commodities under the control of corporate companies

Hyderabad: Agriculture Minister S Niranjan Reddy on Monday demanded that the Centre give an assurance for Minimum Support Price to farmers for their crops by including it in the new farm laws. He said if the new laws were meant to do good for farmers, the Centre should make necessary amendments in the laws assuring MSP, bonus and other provisions to empower farmers.

In a video interaction with Telangana NRIs from the US, Niranjan Reddy said the new farm laws were not beneficial for farmers and instead, were aimed at bringing essential commodities under the control of corporate companies. He suggested the Centre repeal the new laws and formulate laws only after extensive consultation with all the stakeholders. He wondered why the new agriculture laws were required when the National Agriculture Market (eNAM) introduced by the Centre for pan-India electronic trading, was already in existence.

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“Farmers in Punjab and Haryana responded spontaneously as they sell most of their produce through Mandis or agricultural market yards. They managed to reach New Delhi only because they are closer to the national capital. Just because farmers in other States are not protesting does not mean that they have welcomed these laws,” he said, and pointed out that the Centre which was proposing several reforms within the existing systems to end corruption, could also apply the same idea to being in reforms in the existing market yards rather than scrapping them altogether.

The Minister rubbished the argument that farmers can store their produce and sell it for a remunerative price later, and pointed out that unlike other goods, most of crops were perishable. He said farmers will have no option but to sell their produce to corporates in the absence of adequate cold storage units. He demanded to know if the BJP created irrigation water supply to at least 10 lakh acres additionally in the country or in any State after they came to power.

Further, Niranjan Reddy demanded as to why the Centre did not waive off crop loans to benefit farmers who are in distress when it could waive off corporate loans worth Rs 6.5 lakh crore. He said Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao was strengthening the agriculture sector on a priority basis by bringing in reforms without restricting himself to the Centre’s policies. He pointed out that the Centre as well as several State governments were replicating novel schemes like Rythu Bandhu and Rythu Bima introduced by the State government.

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