The chaos and confusing, allegations and counter allegations, social media war are the new order of the day. On every contentious issue, we are on roads to settle the grievance. The redressal mechanism through courts have become weak and our country is on seize almost every quarter of the year. Farmer protest in India's national capital has created headlines globally. But why the farmers are protesting, what is controversial in the contentious Farm Bills is hardly known to majority of the people.
Since 26th November 2020, the borders of Delhi have been witnessing a huge agitation being carried out by farmers, most of them from Punjab, Haryana and lately from Uttar Pradesh. The farmers are protesting against 2 Farm Bills that the Rajya Sabha recently passed: (1) the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and (2) the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020.
The two bills had already cleared the lower house – the Lok Sabha. When they were introduced in the Rajya Sabha, there was ruckus and finally, the Bill was passed through a voice vote. It is noteworthy to mention that NDA ally Akali Dal has quit the government in protest of the passing of the bills in the parliament.
The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020 & The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020
This Bill allows the farmers to sell their produce outside the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) regulated markets. The APMCs are government-controlled marketing yards or mandis. So, the farmers clearly have more choice on who they want to sell.
This Bill makes provisions for the setting up of a framework for contract farming. The farmer and an ordained buyer can strike a deal before the production happens.
Why are the farmers agitating?
The farmers of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana are angry with the provisions of these Bills as they are afraid that these Bills may be the platform that the government (at the Centre) is setting up for the replacement or scrapping of the otherwise robust support system prevalent in their states for the purchase of their crops. They fear that the Minimum Support Price (MSP) guarantee that was their safety net since the Green Revolution of the 1960s kicked in, maybe snatched away from under the pretext of giving the farmers more playing ground and better platforms.
The state-government driven crop produce procurement infrastructure in these areas is very good. Procurement through the Food Corporation of India at promised MSP to farmers, which is declared before every agriculture season, encourages farmers to focus on taking more yield.
Over twenty agricultural crops have MSPs, though the governments primarily buy only rice and wheat. Farmers fear the two recent bills as they feel these agriculture reform processes will kill the government procurement process as well as the MSP. And why do we see most protesters from Punjab and Haryana? That is because they are the biggest beneficiaries of this safety net.
Why has the Centre not reached out?
The Central ministers and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have tried reassuring the farmers that the government has no plans to end the government procurement system nor the MSP policy. But fear, misconceptions persist and the two sparring parties have not had meaningful negotiations.
The focus is on the farmers of Punjab and Haryana, Reason?
Government data suggest nearly 89 per cent of the rice produced by the farmers in Punjab is procured by the government. In Haryana, it is 85%. farmers in Punjab and Haryana face no price risk and price risk and are in fact incentivised to grow paddy and wheat. But the nation has been facing a shortage of pulses and the wheat and rice instead have been a surplus in FCI’s go-downs.
Also, rice is a water-intensive crop and farmers from areas with water shortage too grow it as there is an MSP assured in the end. Continuous adoption of rice-wheat cropping system in North-Western plains of Punjab, Haryana and West Uttar Pradesh has resulted in depletion of ground water and deterioration of soil quality, posing a serious threat to its sustainability," says a government study.
Also, these Farm Bills are encouraging farmers to strike deals with large corporates, and farmers do not trust corporates.
Farmer leaders have clearly stated that the agitation would continue till the farm laws are repealed, however, the government has softened its stance on some demands of the farmers. After a seven-hour long meeting on Thursday at Vigyan Bhawan, the representatives of farmer organisation said they don't want any amendments in the farm laws rather these laws should be withdrawn immediately. In addition to the three farm laws, they have also demanded the removal of heavy penalty on pollution.
The entire confusion is fueled by the exit of NDA partner Akali Dal from the government in protest of the passing of the Farm bills 2020 without enacting the MSP clause in the final draft of the farm bills 2020. It is fair to suggest that Narendra Modi led government being in absolute majority is ignoring the sentiments of its allies since their presence has no significance in the lower house of the parliament for the government survival but as rightly suggested by Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amrinder Singh that anti national forces are looking for an opportunity to penetrate in any popular controversial issue to destabilize the country. Failed Khalistan push by overseas forces may trigger confusion in the minds of the sulking farmer community of Punjab to misguide them on the pretext of ethic religious divide hence the government of the day must remain vigilant and the broader concessions should be extended to farming community to defuse the unnecessary bitterness and heart break between the government and its people.