M A I N   N E W S

Badal slams decentralised procurement
WTO no threat to farmers: PM
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 21
The Centre and states today locked horns on the foodgrain procurement issue and the WTO with Punjab leading the bandwagon of states in opposing the decentralised procurement policy.

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said: “The present system of procurement through the FCI is functioning quite smoothly and is a major factor responsible for leading the country out of the dark periods of acute food scarcity.”

The Centre should provide necessary storage capacity and budgetary support for the procurement and storage of foodgrains, if the states need to procure and distribute the foodgrains, said Prem Kumar Dhumal Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister.

Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, opposing decentralised procurement,said the current system of the FCI was time-tested and there was no need to change it.

“What needs to be done is to bring about changes in the FCI and efficiency in its working,” he said.

The state Chief Minister’s plea comes even as the Union Food Minister Shanta Kumar said the Centre would save at least Rs 2000 crore on fuel alone if the procurement of foodgrains and storage was decentralised and undertaken by the states.

The opposing views on the complex issues figured at the Chief Ministers’ conference on agriculture Strategies and food management which was chaired by the Prime Minister here.

Mr Badal said the farm sector was already going through a phase of severe stress and was saved from a complete collapse only through the system of assured market and administered prices.

The Punjab Chief Minister said any attempt to replace the time-tested formula of MSP with what had been vaguely described as “economic prices” could only have disastrous implications for our economy.

“If anything, the present practice needs to be further strengthened and fine-tuned so that the actual MSP is fixed accounting for factors like inflation,” he said.

Rejecting the suggestion of handing over the responsibility for procurement operations to the states, Mr Badal said it was both impracticle and inadvisable to decentralise food procurement, as the state governments did not have enough financial resources to procure, store and handle huge quantities of foodgrains for a long period.

Describing the WTO regime as a “highly discriminatory economic order,” Mr Badal said in its present form it “spelt doom for the economic well-being of the country.”

Stating that the country was not taken into confidence while signing the WTO, Mr Badal said its impact on agriculture would thus throw the entire economy out of gear.

The Himachal Chief Minister said the states have not been given much exposure regarding various provisions of the WTO agreement.

Earlier, inaugurating the conference, Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, said that there was a need to change the present centralised procurement policy and look for better alternatives that would help the farmer, the consumer and the government.

Pointing out that the country’s procurement policy movement, and stocking of farm produce originated when India was still suffering from scarcities, Mr Vajpayee said since the country had moved into an era of plenty, the policies and procedures should change suitably.

Addressing the conference the Prime Minister while talking about the need for a change in the farming strategies, sought to allay the fears of the states on the impact of the agreement on the farming sector.

The Prime Minister’s views were complemented by other central ministers, including Food Minister Shanta Kumar, Agriculture Minister Nitish Kumar, Commerce and Industry Minister Murasoli Maran and Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha.

Mr Shanta Kumar was more categorical when he said decentralised procurement was the need of the hour especially when procurement of wheat and rice had touched new heights. Decentralisation of procurement had been adopted by only three states and there the savings in economic cost was as much as Rs 140 crore. He estimated that decentralised procurement throughout the country would result in savings of around Rs 2000 crore in economic costs.

It was mentioned that as a first step, the Food Corporation of India would be restructured and this year’s budget had unveiled a new system of decentralised, state-level procurement and distribution.

The Prime Minister, who convened today’s meeting to have a thorough discussion on the WTO regime on agriculture, said contrary to apprehensions that removing quantitative restrictions would dramatically increase agricultural imports, non-oil imports had actually decreased by 14.7 per cent in 2000-01. He also talked about various measures taken by the government to keep its hold on the agriculture sector.

He said one of the major challenges in agriculture was to reduce costs and raise productivity and quality of agricultural produce to global standards. He said better productivity could be achieved by the use of science and technology inputs and raising the educational levels of farmers.

Expressing concern over the falling investment in agriculture, Mr Vajpayee said there was a need to devise attractive policies to encourage private investment in the sector.

Crop diversification was another subject taken up by the Centre. Foodgrain production had remained confined to only two crops, rice and wheat, and production of coarse cereals and pulses has been neglected. “We need to revamp our strategy to attain self-sufficiency in pulses and edible oils,” he added.

Mr Vajpayee said restriction on the movement and stocking of agricultural produce had prevented farmers from getting the best price. There was a need to review the operation of the Essential Commodities Act and remove all restrictions on free inter-state movement of goods. Besides, the various control orders that limited the stocking of farm produce also required an urgent relook.

Mr Shanta Kumar was more frank in the pitfalls of the current food management programme and pointed out that the offtake by the states under the PDS was not satisfactory and was a matter of concern.

Agriculture Minister Nitish Kumar said that in order to build on the gains of the Green Revolution, it was imperative to review the prevailing systems and practices and come up with sustainable options.

Commerce Minister Murasoli Maran said the WTO agreement on agriculture had a 10-year implementation period beginning 1995 and up to now, India had not taken any decision that constrains its domestic policy options.