New Delhi: The Modi government has moved from a “production centric” to “profitability centric” approach in agriculture so that farmers get maximum benefit from their produce, Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said on Monday. Shekhawat, who is also the general secretary of BJP’s farmers wing, said the Modi government has not only ensured that the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for farmers’ produce is enhanced but also that procurement is significantly increased.
He said the government has taken a series of steps for the welfare of farmers, such as increasing the MSP and procurement of grains, working on irrigation facilities, and ensuring that they get better credit facilities. “Since we evolved from a food deficit nation to a food sufficient country, our approach was always production centric and how can farmer’s produce increase,” he said.
“For the first time, Modi government changed the approach to look at the farm sector. He approached it as profitability centric than production centric,” Shekhawat said. The minister said the government was committed to ensuring that farmers get the MSP for their produce.
“It is the right of the farmer that he gets MSP with a profitable value and the government is committed towards it,” Shekhawat added. He said in comparison to 2013-14, in 2020-21 the MSP on wheat increased by 40 per cent, by 65 per cent on grams and 32 per cent on groundnut. He said similarly, procurement centres have increased from 36,000 in 2013-14 to 64,000 in 2020-21. His comments come amid attack on the government by the opposition over the passage of bills related to the farming sector.
The Rajya Sabha on Sunday passed the Farmer’s Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020. The bills have already been passed by the Lok Sabha and will now go to the President for his assent before they are notified as laws. The opposition has termed the legislation as “death warrant” of farmers while the government has defended the move, saying the passage of two farm sector bills is a “watershed moment” in the history of Indian agriculture and that they will ensure a complete transformation of the farm sector and empower crores of farmers.
When asked about BJP ally Shiromani Akali Dal opposing the legislation, Shekhawat said, “I think they were convinced. The agriculture minister held discussions with various stakeholders in Punjab as well. They must have taken the decision out of political compulsion,” he said. SAD MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal resigned from the Cabinet last week to protest against the legislations. Shekhawat added that a number of steps by the government ensuring better irrigation have also helped the farmers.
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