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21-11-2021, 01:51 PM
19 Nov 2021 06:58PM
(Updated: 19 Nov 2021 06:58PM)
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New legislation would have opened up a decades-old system of state-run wholesale markets to more private sales.
But farmers and opposition politicians argued it would leave those working the land vulnerable to exploitation.
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Farming has remained relatively untouched by the push to modernise India; its growth has consistently lagged behind the overall economy for years - often significantly. The poverty rate in rural India is about 25 per cent compared to 14 per cent in urban areas
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Parliament in 2020 passed legislation that the government said would boost farm output and income by removing many restrictions on sales.
Farmers and buyers would have been free to trade outside the physical markets designated in each state
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WHAT WERE FARMERS AFRAID OF?
Mainly, they feared the demise of the government’s guaranteed purchases of certain agricultural products at set prices. That could have resulted in wild fluctuations in a country prone to weather extremes.
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The guaranteed prices are used as benchmarks for various farm commodities, but private buyers do not have to pay them.
Farmers also said the laws could have caused higher costs and more farmers losing their land due to increased debts, adding to a problem of suicides among agricultural workers.
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WILL FARMERS END THEIR PROTEST?
Some leaders representing farmers said no. Rakesh Tikait, a prominent farmer leader and spokesman of the Bhartiya Kisan Union, noted that hundreds of farmers lost their lives during the agitation.
Another group, Samyukta Kisan Morcha, said that they wanted not only the repeal of the new laws but a statutory price guarantee for all agricultural goods for all farmers. “This important demand of farmers is still pending.”
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/why...ws-2325611
(Updated: 19 Nov 2021 06:58PM)
......
New legislation would have opened up a decades-old system of state-run wholesale markets to more private sales.
But farmers and opposition politicians argued it would leave those working the land vulnerable to exploitation.
......
Farming has remained relatively untouched by the push to modernise India; its growth has consistently lagged behind the overall economy for years - often significantly. The poverty rate in rural India is about 25 per cent compared to 14 per cent in urban areas
......
Parliament in 2020 passed legislation that the government said would boost farm output and income by removing many restrictions on sales.
Farmers and buyers would have been free to trade outside the physical markets designated in each state
......
WHAT WERE FARMERS AFRAID OF?
Mainly, they feared the demise of the government’s guaranteed purchases of certain agricultural products at set prices. That could have resulted in wild fluctuations in a country prone to weather extremes.
......
The guaranteed prices are used as benchmarks for various farm commodities, but private buyers do not have to pay them.
Farmers also said the laws could have caused higher costs and more farmers losing their land due to increased debts, adding to a problem of suicides among agricultural workers.
......
WILL FARMERS END THEIR PROTEST?
Some leaders representing farmers said no. Rakesh Tikait, a prominent farmer leader and spokesman of the Bhartiya Kisan Union, noted that hundreds of farmers lost their lives during the agitation.
Another group, Samyukta Kisan Morcha, said that they wanted not only the repeal of the new laws but a statutory price guarantee for all agricultural goods for all farmers. “This important demand of farmers is still pending.”
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/why...ws-2325611
