Akhilesh slams Centre for offering ‘low’ prices to potato farmers

The former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh claimed farmers were being exploited because of the anti-farmer policies of the BJP government.

Slamming the central government for offering low prices to farmers for their agricultural produce, Samajwadi Party (SP) national president Akhilesh Yadav alleged that the BJP government had made agriculture an unprofitable proposition.

Instead of buying potatoes on MSP, the government has offered to buy them for ₹650 per quintal (under the Market Intervention Scheme-MIS), the SP chief observed

In a statement issued by the party on Saturday, Akhilesh was quoted as saying, “Will farmers even think of sowing the next crop after suffering losses? Potatoes will topple the government this time... The BJP government that had enticed farmers by promising to double their income will face defeat in 2024 because of potatoes.”

The former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh claimed farmers were being exploited because of the anti-farmer policies of the BJP government. “Distressed potato farmers, on Holi, were seen struggling in queues outside cold storages, but the chief minister is oblivious to the situation... Potato farmers are getting lower prices for their produce even as the input cost has risen,” he said.

Akhilesh added the SP had been demanding MSP for crops, but the BJP government, instead of protecting farmers, had turned patrons into capitalists.

Instead of buying potatoes on MSP, the government has offered to buy them for ₹650 per quintal (under the Market Intervention Scheme-MIS), he observed. “… Considering the rent for hiring a tractor trolley to ferry potatoes, inputs costs that include irrigation, fertiliser, insecticide, pesticide, store charge and labour, the purchase price should be fixed for at least ₹1500 per quintal,” Akhilesh remarked.

Meanwhile, SP national general secretary Shivpal Yadav, who had been raising the issue frequently, also attacked the government.

Shivpal, in a tweet in Hindi, called the ₹650 per quintal price fixed by the government for potato purchase ‘insufficient’ and asked the government to reset the prices to at least ₹1,500 per quintal.