Opinion: Don’t let sunflowers wilt

If there is a legally guaranteed MSP for sunflower seeds, the nation can strike two birds with one stone: it can accelerate crop diversification and self-dependence in the third most consumed edible oil

By Arun Sinha

The recent agitation by Haryana farmers for procurement of sunflower seeds by the State government at the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 6,400 per quintal, as fixed by the central government, was but a hot glowing spark from the unquenched fire of the farmers’ protests of 2020-21.

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For over a year, the farmers had camped through winter, summer and rains in thousands at Delhi’s borders with Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh for a year and gone back home after the central government promised to set up a committee to examine their demand for a legally guaranteed minimum support price for all the 23 crops (7 cereals, 5 pulses, 7 oilseeds, 4 commercial crops) for which the central government fixes a base price every year.

The central government had repealed the three farm laws as demanded by the farmers and thought their protests would end. But the farmers went back home saying they would not be satisfied until the government accepted their demand for a legally guaranteed MSP and would resume their agitation if it did not.

Angry Farmer

The recent blockade of the Chandigarh-Delhi national highway by the Haryana farmers marked the return of the angry farmer to the city. Though the central government fixed Rs 6,400 a quintal as the MSP for sunflower seeds, none of the three parties that buy farmers’ produce —the central government, the State government and the private traders — were buying them at that rate.

The central government does not procure sunflower seeds. The private traders bought it at the price range of Rs 3,600 and Rs 4,200. The State government, which used to buy them in the previous years, had stopped buying them. It started buying only after the farmers mounted protests.

However, it paid Rs 4,800 a quintal, plus Rs 1,000 a quintal by way of compensation for the difference between the MSP and the average market price. The total amount of Rs 5,800 still fell Rs 600 short of the MSP. The farmers wanted the MSP of Rs 6,400 and blocked roads. Eventually, they agreed to call off their stir when the State government announced procurement at Rs 5,000 a quintal, making the effective price Rs 6,000.

You could see nobody was ready to pay the sunflower grower MSP. The reason was simple: MSP is spineless. It has no legal sanction. The buyer is not bound to pay that minimum to the farmer. The Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare fixes MSP for 23 crops every year, but the MSP is notional. If it is legal, the farmers would get it. If farmers know they can get MSP, they would be encouraged to grow the most profitable crops, and in larger and larger areas.

Fixing MSP

The CACP’s first objective in fixing MSP is “to provide incentive to the producer for adopting improved technology and for developing a production pattern broadly in the light of national requirements.” The question to ask here is: was not the Haryana government’s refusal to pay MSP a disincentive to sunflower growers? Was it not going to discourage them from growing sunflowers? Was it not going to decelerate the pace of crop diversification? Crop diversification is a national priority.

The central government is working with the governments of Punjab, Haryana and UP to change the cropping pattern in these green revolution States. By growing adequate rice and wheat these States had fed the nation, but at a high cost: their groundwater has plunged to a very low level. Rice and wheat, particularly rice, are water-guzzling crops. If they continue with the rice-wheat cropping cycle they might not be able to find water to grow anything on their land in a few decades.

It is sad to see the Haryana government not working according to the national priority. Sunflowers are one of the ideal crops for crop diversification. They are highly versatile. They can grow in any soil and climate. They can fit into various cropping patterns. They fetch much higher profits than rice and wheat.

The Haryana government’s approach is actually very strange. The same government had announced a policy in July 2018 to procure the ‘entire crop of sunflower seeds’ in the State at MSP every year. It promised to establish oil extraction units in the State to process “every sunflower seed” procured. In 2017, the State government procured 20 per cent of the total produce of sunflower seeds. In 2018, it procured 50 per cent, and in 2019, 100 per cent.

Digging a Hole

With the government announcement, the area under sunflower cultivation in the State rose from 9,440 hectares in 2018-19 to 12,290 hectares in 2020-21, 13,020 hectares in 2021-22 and 14,160 hectares in 2022-23. This was happening mostly in north Haryana districts of Kurukshetra, Ambala and Karnal which were worst affected by groundwater depletion. Crop diversification seemed to be on track. But the Haryana government, which was supposed to accelerate it, dug a hole in its road.

The Haryana government’s logic for stopping the procurement of sunflower seeds is weird. It says if it procures them at MSP, sunflower seeds from Punjab will flood Haryana’s farm produce markets. Can the national cause of crop diversification be given up for the fear of farm produce smuggling from a neighbouring State? If you look at it, the solution even to this weird problem lies in legally guaranteed MSP. If farmers in all States are being paid the same price, there would be no smuggling to other States.

By increasing sunflower acreage and yield, India can reduce its sunflower oil imports. Currently, the country consumes about 24 lakh tonnes of sunflower oil, 60% of which comes from Ukraine, Russia and Argentina. Sunflower oil is most commonly used in homes in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and other parts of southern India. If there is a legally guaranteed MSP for sunflower seeds, the nation can strike two birds with one stone: it can accelerate crop diversification as well as self-dependence in the third most consumed edible oil.