Budget allocations won’t help without making MSP mandatory: farm leaders

Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana leader Raju Shetti attributed the absence of MSP mention in the recent Union Budget to “lack of strong political will” to address the root problems which are confronting the farmers and agriculture sector.

“If the MSP can work in favour of farmers who are sugarcane cultivators and sugar mills, why not for other farmers cultivating cotton, soyabean, pulses and oilseeds,” he asked.

In Maharashtra, average sugarcane cultivation is on 10 lakh hectares and involves more than 12 lakh cane farmers.
“Those at the helm often mislead the public by saying MSP is enforced and would raise the prices of food grain. This is a myth which is being campaigned to avoid MSP implementation,” he added.

Raju Shetti also alleged that both central and state governments are often guided by certain political and trader lobbies who are not willing to let go their control on the agriculture sector.

Farm leader from Vidarbha region Vijay Jawandhia said that it was ironic that the Narendra Modi-led government bestowed the Bharat Ratna on late economist and agriculture expert M S Swaminathan for his immense contribution in the agriculture sector, but failed to implement his recommendations.

Swaminathan, in 2004, had suggested making MSP mandatory.

Questioning the promise of mission atmanirbhar in pulses and edible oils in the Union Budget, Jawandhia said, “ Today, prices of tur have sharply declined from Rs 12,000 to Rs 7500 per quintal. So are prices of ‘harbara’ declined from Rs 6500 to Rs 5000 per quintal. If the farmers cannot recover even the expenditure from the crops how will it make them financially sustainable.”