House panel to review impact of retail FDI on agriculture

Stepping up the political heat on the government over its decision to allow FDI in multi-brand retail, a parliamentary standing committee has planned to review the impact of the policy on agriculture sector. Saubhadra Chatterji reports.

Stepping up the political heat on the government over its decision to allow FDI in multi-brand retail, a parliamentary standing committee has planned to review the impact of the policy on agriculture sector. The reconstituted standing committee on agriculture, in its meeting last week, sought to keep this review as one of its key agenda.

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Impact of the FDI policy on agriculture is a hot topic in the political circles with both the opposition and ruling coalition building their arguments on it.

While the opposition parties and even the UPA's estranged ally Trinamool Congress are crying foul over the FDI's adverse effect on agriculture, the ruling UPA has pointed out how it would benefit the farming community.

"The issue would affect the lives of millions of farmers. So there is a need to study it," Basudeb Acharya, chairman of the parliamentary panel on agriculture, told HT.

The previous suo-moto review of the panel was on cultivation of genetically-modified crops and it favoured caution in such farming. Acharya is the leader of CPM in the Lok Sabha.

In the Friday's meeting, the proposal to review the FDI issue didn't get instant support among all members.

A section of the Congress reportedly felt the issue should be dealt by the parliamentary panel on food and consumers affairs headed by partyman Vilas Muttemwar.