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Himachal Kisan Sabha observes ‘MSP Day’ to press for various demands
Kisan Sabha state president Kuldeep Singh Tanwar alleged that the farmers were being cheated by both the Centre and state government.
The Himachal Kisan Sabha on Wednesday observed “Minimum Support Price (MSP) Day”, demanding the Centre to implement the recommendations of the National Commission on Farmers (Swaminathan Commission), among other things.
The farmers stressed that they should be paid the declared support price for their food grains, appropriate MSP for fruits, flowers, vegetables, milk, honey, wool should be fixed, supplementary industries should be set up for the products made in the state so that additional yields can be processed, proper arrangements should be made for cold stores for perishable fruits and vegetables.
State unit president Kuldeep Singh Tanwar said that they are reminding the state and central governments of the promises made to the farmers of Himachal before the 2014 general elections, in which Prime Minister Narendra Modi had assured that their debts would be forgiven. As per the recommendations of the Commission, remunerative price of the crop will be given.
“The farmers of Himachal were promised that MSP will be given for fruits, vegetables, milk and flowers produced in the state, but these announcements by PM Modi have proven to be blatant lies,” he added.
Tanwar alleged that the farmers were being cheated by both the Centre and state government. Despite the MSP of maize has been fixed at ₹1,850 in the state, farmers here are getting only ₹1,100 to ₹1,200 per quintal. Millions of farmers in the state, who are growing around 8 lakh tonnes of maize, are affected, but the government is not worried about it, Tanwar said, adding that on the contrary, the ruling party is engaged in vindicating the recently passed “anti-farmer” bills in Parliament.
It should be noted that the MSPs for maize, wheat and paddy have been fixed in the state, but neither the Food Corporation of India (FCI) procures these crops nor does the government. The farmers sell surplus wheat and paddy in the neighbouring state of Punjab or Haryana. The FCI does not buy maize because it is not part of the public distribution system.
