The Karnataka government said on Thursday that it will bring an amendment to the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committees (APMC) Act , restoring old provisions of the law, and junking changes made by the state’s previous BJP-government .
“Karnataka Cabinet has also decided to amend the APMC Act in the state to bring back the old law. The amendments brought by the previous government changed the core, outline and even the purpose. It was an injustice to farmers” said law and parliamentary affairs minister HK Patil.
APMCs regulate the sale of agricultural produce.
Patil announced that the amended Act would be withdrawn, and the original Karnataka Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation and Development) Act of 1966 would be restored, incorporating certain provisions from the amended version.
The previous government amended the APMC Act to align it with the Centre’s controversial farm laws, which faced strong opposition from farmers across multiple states and were eventually repealed.
APMC minister Shivanand Patil said that the amendment caused significant financial losses to APMCs. “Profits of APMCs, which stood at ₹620 crore in 2019-20, were reduced to ₹194 in 2022-23,” he added.
BJP leader Ashwath Narayan said that the decision was taken without consulting any of the stakeholders. “The minister said that the APMC’s profit has come down so they are changing the rules. But what is good for the farmer, was there any discussion on that? “
{{/usCountry}}BJP leader Ashwath Narayan said that the decision was taken without consulting any of the stakeholders. “The minister said that the APMC’s profit has come down so they are changing the rules. But what is good for the farmer, was there any discussion on that? “
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RESPONSE FROM EXPERT