After announcing minimum support prices for rabi crops in advance, the Centre on Saturday ordered commencement of procurement operations for kharif paddy/rice “immediately” (from Saturday) in Punjab and Haryana to placate farmers agitating against the farm Bills. Significantly, these two States have been witnessing maximum protest against the farm Bills in the last few days.
While ‘rail roko’ agitation by farmers organisations was continued in Punjab’s Amritsar and Ferozepur districts on Saturday as more farmers and their farmers joined in. The protesters reached the protest site in tractor trailers, buses, four-wheelers and even on motorcycles and went bare-chested to express their resentment over the response got from the Union Government. Farmers have extended the ‘rail roko’ agitation till September 29. Besides, farmers protests continued in sporadic manner in Haryana, UP and southern states.
In its order, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution said it would commence procurement of paddy in the two north Indian States from Saturday, ahead of October 1, the date set for commencing procurement across the country otherwise. The order said that the step has been taken in view of early arrival of paddy this year. According to the ministry, state procuring agencies including Food Corporation of India (FCI) are in a state of readiness for smoothly undertaking procurement operations.
The Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2020-21 for paddy/rice was scheduled to commence from October 1 in all procuring States, but the Centre has allowed procurement operations to begin from Saturday in both these states.
“…in view of early arrival of paddy in the mandis of Haryana and Punjab. Government of India has appeared the commencement of procurement operations for paddy/rice immediately in both these States from today, i.e. with effect from 26th September 2020 to ensure that farmers are facilitated in selling their produce at Minimum Support Price (MSP) expeditiously,” the order said. “Orders for commencement of procurement operations for paddy /rice from 26th September, 2020 in Haryana and Punjab have been issued,” it added.
P K Das, additional chief secretary, Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs department, Haryana, said that about 4 lakh quintals of ‘PR-126’ variety of paddy has been harvested by farmers in four districts of Kurukshetra, Karnal, Ambala and Kaithal. Farmers of these districts have brought their crops to the mandis and procurement will start from Sunday.
The Government has kept a target to procure 113 lakh tonnes of rice from Punjab and 44 lakh tonnes from Haryana during the kharif marketing season. Otherwise, total rice procurement target is kept at 495.37 lakh tonnes for the entire country for the 2020-21 kharif season.
The Centre has fixed MSP for ‘’common variety’’ paddy at Rs 1,868 per quintal and for ‘’A’’ grade variety at Rs 1,888 per quintal for the current year.
In the last kharif season (KMS 2019-20), a total quantity of 512 lakh metric tonnes of rice was procured from 23 states. However, biggest quantity of rice was procured from Punjab (109 lakh tonnes metric tonnes), and the state was followed by Telangana (73 LMT), Andhra Pradesh (54 LMT), Chhattisgarh (49 LMT), Odisha (47 LMT) and Haryana (43 LMT).
Farmers have been protesting on rails tracks at many places in the state since September 24. Squatting on rails tracks, agitating farmers on Saturday shouted slogans against the BJP-led government at the Centre and demanded the rollback of the farm Bills which they described as black laws.
In Amritsar, a group of protesting farmers went shirtless to express their anger against the farm Bills. Farmers have taken off their ‘kurtas’ and shirts to make the government hear our voice, said Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee general secretary Sarwan Singh Pandher over the phone. Bare-chested protesters, sitting on Amritsar-Delhi rail track, raised slogans against the BJP-led central government.
In Mohali, farmers burnt effigy of PM Modi and blocked roads. Keeping in view the undergoing blockade of railway lines by farmers at several places, the Northern railway’s Ferozepur division has extended the cancellation of 14 trains (up and down) for one more day on September 27.