The BJP on Sunday demanded immediate implementation of the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for all the food grains as recommended by the National Commission on Farmers.
Even though the Centre has brought the Food Security Bill, the report of the Commission headed by MS Swaminathan has been kept in cold storage since 2006. The Commission has recommended that MSP should be at least 50 per cent more than the weighted average cost of production.
“The proposed Food Security Act will damage the economy and the food chain of the nation will be disrupted if due consideration is not given to the interest of the food producers,” national president of the BJP Kishan Morcha Om Prakash Dhankar told reports.
The Centre has fixed the MSP for paddy at Rs 1,250 per quintal while the weighted average cost of production is Rs 1,400 per quintal.
As per the recommendation of the Commission, the MSP for paddy should be fixed at Rs 2,100 per quintal, he said.
Dhankar, who attended the State executive committee meeting of the Kishan Morcha presided by State unit president Maheswar Sahu, said if the working class people will get BPL rice at one rupee a kg why should he toil to grow crops.
If the Government overlooks these aspects, farmers will not venture into growing crops and there will be cascading effect on the economy and the food stock of the country, he cautioned.
The economic condition of farming community is going from bad to worse due to the faulty agricultural policy of the governments both in the State and at the Centre.
The income of farmers has trickled down and mounting debts have led the farmers to commit suicide.
In the last three years, about 350 farmers have committed suicide in the State.
Accusing the State Government of acting like land brokers for industries and multi-nationals, the meeting passed a resolution demanding a ban on sale of agriculture land for other purposes.
The party slammed the State Government for not having a disaster management plan. In the event of natural calamity or disaster, there is no social security measures for the farming community.
The meeting decided to launch Statewide Kishan Adhikar rally on September 10 and 11 on its 15-point charter of demands.
A nationwide campaign will be launched in the first week of October to press the Centre for a pro-farmer policy.