Even as the opposition parties, including the AAP and SAD, on Tuesday come together at the same platform to ensure passage of Punjab Government’s bills to counter Centre’s farm laws, they wanted the State Government to guarantee procurement of produce at MSP in case Centre backs out.
Supporting Punjab Government’s three agriculture bills, AAP MLA and the Leader of Opposition Harpal Singh Cheema said that the Punjab Government should bring the government procurement mechanism of all crops under MSP under the ambit of law.
Expressing concern over the contentious bills introduced by the government, Cheema said that in case the private buyers or the Central Government agencies did not turn up for the procurement of crops, “will the Punjab Government go for the procurement of the crops itself?
He urged the Government that it should come up with a Bill to this effect to ensure that the Government would procure all the crops at MSP.
Dubbing the move as “impractical”, the Chief Minister asked Cheema if he had any idea about the financial implications of such a move. “In any case, where would the state sell the produce even if it purchased the same,” he added.
Responding, Cheema said that if the State Government succeeded in nailing mafia calling the shots in Punjab, the Government could ensure MSP on all crops on its own.
AAP MLA Aman Arora, questioning if the repealing the Centre’s farm laws, awarding stringent punishment and declaring the state a single market yard would solve the problem of the farmers, said that the moot question was not about declaring MSP but definitely procurement of crops.
“If the private buyers did not turn up to procure the produce or in case the Central Government refrained from issuing CCLs in two years, Punjab Government should guarantee on its own the procurement of entire grain at MSP by bringing it under the ambit of the law,” he said.
AAP’s another MLA Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer maintained that Punjab’s revenue should be increased in view of the future
challenges faced by the agrarian state so that the State Government was able to have MSP on its own.
Citing examples of the states of Tamil Nadu and Telangana, Meet Hayer said: “If by pursuing pro-state policies, Tamil Nadu Government can earn a whopping Rs 32,000 crore from excise tax and Telangana mining can increase revenue from Rs 400 crore to Rs 4,000 crore, why can’t Punjab?”
In Punjab, private corporate houses are already destroying the Government resources…There is no difference between the Ambani-Adani and the who’s who of political spectrum, when it came to loot Punjab,” he said while adding that both were indulging in an open ‘loot’ of Punjab.
Also asserting that Punjab Government should ensure that agricultural marketing regimen should be kept intact in the State, AAP’s another MLA Rupinder Kaur Ruby said that the Government should instead of keeping MSP confined to wheat and paddy only, should extend it to all crops.
“As long as the loopholes in the procurement norms are not plugged, the exploitation of farmers at the hands of private buyers could not be stopped,” she said.
At the same time, the Akali Dal also sought a categorical assurance from the Chief Minister that the State will purchase all farmer crops including wheat, paddy, cotton and maize at MSP in case the Centre defaults on this.
“The fight to secure justice for the ‘kisan’, ‘khet mazdoor’ and ‘arhtiyas’ as well as three crore Punjabis has just started. Now, the Chief Minister must give a categorical assurance that the State Government will purchase all farmer crops including wheat, paddy, cotton and maize at MSP if the Centre defaults on the same,” said leader of SAD legislature party Sharanjit SIngh Dhillon and party MLAs Bikram Majithia, while addressing the media later.
They added that it was unfortunate that the Chief Minister refused to allay the fears of farmers by giving a concrete assurance in this regard.
Majithia said that it was also unfortunate that the Chief Minister has thrown the ball in the Centre’s court by passing Bills concerning Trade and Commerce which were in the concurrent list and required Presidential assent. “It would have been better if the Government had passed a Bill under the Agriculture head by moving to make the entire State a single principle market yard to negate the implementation of the Bills in Punjab. Any such Bill would have received both the Governor’s as well as the Presidential nod being a State subject. A huge opportunity has been missed,” he said.