Absence of legal guarantee on MSP worries farmers
Nitish Sharma
Tribune News Service
Kurukshetra, August 6
Even as the Haryana Government has decided to procure all crops at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) in the state, the farmer unions said the absence of legal guarantee on the MSP continues to be a major concern for the farmers. Welcoming the move of the government, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni) spokesman Rakesh Bains, who had filed a case in the Punjab and Haryana High Court in 2014 seeking MSP on all crops, said, “The government has finally accepted that the crops must be procured on the MSP and we welcome the government’s decision. But the absence of legal guarantee continues to be a matter of concern. The demand of legal guarantee on the MSP is a major reason behind the farmers’ agitation and the government should provide a legal guarantee to make sure the crops are not sold below the MSP even during the procurement by private players.”
Procurement on MSP a welcome move
The decision taken by the government to procure all crops on the MSP is a big victory for farmers. We request the government to include rabi maize in the list of crops to be procured on the MSP in Haryana and also push for a law on legal guarantee on the MSP so that even the future governments can procure the crops on the MSP. — Gurnam Singh, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni) Chief
Bhartiya Kisan Union Charuni chief Gurnam Singh said, “The decision taken by the government is a big victory for the farmers as we have been struggling for years to get the MSP on all crops. We request the government to include rabi maize in the list of crops to be procured on the MSP in Haryana and also push for a law on legal guarantee on the MSP so that even the future governments can procure the produce on the MSP. We also demand that other political parties who have their governments in other states like the AAP in Punjab should also start procuring the crops on the MSP in their respective states.”
Gurnam, who has announced to contest the Assembly election from Pehowa under his political outfit Sanyukt Sangharsh Party, believes the government’s decision was the outcome of the union’s move of contesting election. He said, “We have held several agitations over the years for the MSP, but the government had never made the announcement. But now since we have started uniting farmers and motivating them to participate in the active politics, the government has made the announcement. The farmers have started understanding the power of votes, and the fear of losing their grounds has gripped political parties.”
Meanwhile, Tejveer Singh, spokesman of Bhartiya Kisan Union (Shaheed Bhagat Singh), said, “Despite the fact that there is a minimum support price, the crops are sold below the MSP, because there is no legal guarantee. If the intention of the government is clear and it wants welfare of the farmers, it should push for a legal guarantee and there shouldn’t be any major problem as there is a BJP government in the Centre too. Besides the MSP, the government should also move towards resolving other issues of the farmers.”
