Rabi procurement: Stand-off continues over direct payments to Punjab farmers

Graduation of rabi procurement is just a week away (expected April 10), but no end is in sight to the stand-off amongst the Centre and the Punjab government more than direct payments for the foodgrains procured. Ironically, no person, which include farmers who are ostensibly the beneficiaries of the direct money transfer, is happy with the shift.

The Ministry of Client Affair, Food items and General public Distribution had knowledgeable the Punjab government that DBT to farmers is necessary for the coming rabi wheat procurement time. Nevertheless, the Condition has refused to put into action it, and has sought appointment with Key Minister Narendra Modi to explore the problem and defer the plan for at least just one yr.

Arhtiyas opposed to shift

Arhtiyas, or commission agents, in Punjab are up in arms from the shift. According to them, it is aimed at destroying APMC (Agricultural Deliver Advertising and marketing Committee) mandis and providing almost everything on a platter to private gamers, whom the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre desires to endorse.

“The recent program of payment ( via commission agents) has been in location for the very last 50 yrs and has worked nicely. Even farmers do not have any grievances about it. We have been shelling out down to the very last penny to farmers promptly,” explained Vijay Kalra, President, Federation of Arhtiya Association of Punjab. Arhtiyas prepare to hold a big protest satisfy in Moga on Monday, in which several farmers leaders are also expected to take part.

Cumbersome for farmers

Balbir Singh Rajewal, President, Bharatiya Kisan Union (Rajewal), explained the shift is not in favour of farmers in the Condition. “It is going to make it cumbersome for farmers to offer their develop at procurement centres. Each and every time a farmer will take the develop to the mandi, he has to develop proof of his landholding. Just about forty for every cent of land in Punjab is owned by absentee landlords who have given their land to tenants for cultivation. Although the Centre argues that such tenants can register their contracts with landlords in purchase to get the DBT, how several landlords would arrive forward as they will concern shedding their holdings to tenants who have been tilling the land for several yrs,” asked Rajewal.

He explained the DBT problem arrived up a few yrs back when Parkash Singh Badal was the Main Minister. “When that government sought the belief of farmers on this problem, only three farmers supported it. The farmers have self-assurance in commission agents, who have been making payments to them promptly,” Rajewal explained to BusinessLine.

According to Kalra, insistence of land data as proof led to 22 for every cent fewer paddy procurement in Haryana in the preceding kharif time.The shift, he suggests, is only an try to dismantle the Food items Corporation of India so that private corporations can take its location. Farmers throughout the place will hold demonstrations from any shift to scrap the FCI, Rajewal included.

‘Wrong timing’

One more farmer leader, explained the timing of the Centre was mistaken, even though he was not completely from the notion. “It is currently being applied in the midst of a farmer agitation. Secondly, there ought to have been a lead time of at least six months for bringing such a drastic transform, not just just one month as is the situation now,” he explained.

Gurdeep Kamra of the Fee Agents Association in Haryana, which applied the plan this yr, explained the DBT will not do the job and Haryana would see a big selection of farmers hitting the road as payments are not going to be smooth.

“While arhtiyas would get two.5 for every cent commission for the solutions they supply such as procurement, their involvement in procurement is going to be limited in the new program. Previously, arhtiyas utilised to be certain the good quality of grains they procured. But now on they will procure whichever the farmers provide in. If the good quality of grains is inferior (such as substantial dampness concentrations) their payments might get caught, major to big disgruntlement amid farmers,” Kamra explained, expressing self-assurance that the Condition would revert to the previously program from really next yr.