In its reaction to the paddy MSP(Minimum Support Price) hiked by the Union Government on Wednesday, the BJD said the increase of Rs 200 doesn’t comply with the Swamminathan Committee recommendation of fixing the MSP at one and a half times price over the cost of production.
“Increasing paddy MSP by Rs 200 per quintal is a welcome step. But the Union Government has failed to keep its promise to increase paddy MSP to one-and-a-half times of cost of production. If Swaminathan Committee report is taken into consideration, the MSP would have been increased by Rs 300 more,” said BJD spokesperson Pratap Keshari Deb. Deb further alleged that the Union Government has once again sidelined Odisha’s demand of increasing Paddy MSP to Rs 2,930 basin on real cost of production. “The Union Government is always talking big and in the habit of not fulfilling promises. People of Odisha and other parts of the country have already felt this during the last four years,” said Deb.Odisha PCC president Niranjan Patnaik said the hike of Rs 200 in the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for quintal of paddy for 2018-19 Kharif season announced by the Government of India is not sufficient and remunerative.
Pointing out that he MSP for paddy for 2017-18 was Rs 1,550, Patnaik reminded that the Centre had earlier announced in its budget to hike the price by one and a half times of the production cost for Kharif crops.
He said that this year the announcement of MSP has been delayed almost for one month. Prior to this, usually the MSP was announced in the first or second week of June. Despite the inordinate delay, the BJP Government has not given proper attention to the input cost of agri produce.
Patnaik also pointed out that the Odisha Government had suggested the Centre to fix the MSP of common variety paddy at Rs 2,930. The Centre has betrayed the farmers, alleged Patnaik and demanded a revision of the MSP at the earliest.
However, the State BJP termed the increase in paddy MSP as an all-time record and a historic decision by the Narendra Modi Government.
The party thanked Modi, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Radhamohan Sinh and Union Ministers Jual Oram and Dharmendra Pradhan for raising of paddy MSP by Rs 200 per quintal of paddy.
“The Modi Government has increased the paddy MSP by one-and-a-half time of cost of production. The MSP of Rs 1,750 per quintal of paddy will help Odisha farmers a lot,” said BJP vice-president Samir Mohanty.
On the other hand, he alleged the BJD Government has failed to provide any support farmers and is only shedding crocodile tears in their names. He said the State Government should ensure that all farmers get the increased MSP during the upcoming Kharif season procurement and no distress sale takes place.