Decision on MSP only after report of panel set up after farmers' stir on bills
A committee, set up by the Centre following farmers' protest against three farm laws to examine various issues including minimum support price (MSP), has held 30 to 35 meetings so far. The recommendations of the committee are yet to come," he said in a written reply.
Team RuralVoice
The government can take any decision on giving status of legal right to MSP only after receiving the recommendations of the committee formed after the farmers' agitation against three bills, now withdrawn.
Replying to supplementaries in the Lok Sabha, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said that the government is giving Minimum Support Price to the farmers as per the recommendations of Swaminathan committee report. He said that now government is making procurement worth Rs 2.28 lakh crore. After the farmers' agitation, a committee was formed to look into issues related to farmers including giving legal right to MSP. The committee has held 35 sitting so far, and its recommendations are yet to come.
"A committee, set up by the Centre following farmers' protest against three farm laws to examine various issues including minimum support price (MSP), has held 30 to 35 meetings so far. The recommendations of the committee are yet to come," he said in a written reply. Tomar also said that the Swaminathan Commission's report on agriculture reforms came during the UPA regime but it was the Narendra Modi government which started working on its recommendations and fixed the MSP at 50 per cent more than production cost.
Replying to a query by the Congress' Leader in the House Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury during the Question Hour, Tomar said the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government had set up the commission under MS Swaminathan but its report came in 2017 when Congress-led United Progressive Alliance was at the helm under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The Manmohan Singh government then set up a group comprising then Union agriculture minister to consider the recommendations of the commission, Tomar said. He said the Swaminathan Commission had made 201 recommendations. Of them, the NDA government is working on 100 recommendations. "But, the main recommendation was on MSP. Swaminathan had said MSP should be declared by adding 50 per cent profit on the cost (production)."
"The UPA government was there till 2014. During the UPA regime, this recommendation (on MSP) was not considered After Narendra Modi came to the helm, work on the commission's recommendations began. Today, MSP is declared by adding 50 per cent profit on the cost of production," the Union Agriculture Minister said.
