Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday stressed on the need to address the distress situation, inherited over the years, in the farm sector on priority and make farming a remunerative activity. He interacted with over 400 farmers from Outer Delhi area. BJP MP from West Delhi Parvesh Verma was present on the occasion.
Voicing concerns over the difficulties being faced by the farmers even after 70 years of Independence and the country making strides in various fields, Naidu said "A doctor wants his son to become a doctor, a lawyer's son becomes a lawyer, an actor wants his son to become an actor despite not being fully qualified, but a farmer prays for his son becoming at least a Class-IV employee.
This is because of the uncertainty of farm incomes even as farming is physically very demanding. The only way to address this is to ensure remunerative and assured incomes to farmers through necessary interventions".
Naidu, addressed the farmers who came to facilitate him on 'a farmer becoming the Vice-President' and dwelt at length about the problems adversely impacting farm incomes including the paradox of high input prices and non-remunerative prices for farm produce, inadequate institutional financing, lack of cold storage and transport facilities, shortage of irrigation and power supply, poor marketing systems, inadequate penetration of modern farm technology and inadequate public investments.
Naidu referred to his visiting Madanapalle market in Andhra Pradesh where tomato was sold at one rupee per kg and the same day in Bengaluru at Rs.8/kg and the next day in Delhi at Rs.20/kg, which reflect poorly on farmer being deprived of his due. He urged the farmers to take advantage of the e-NAM (National Agricultural Market).
Noting that States have to play a critical role in assuring remunerative returns to farmers, Naidu referred to the success of focussed efforts of the Madhya Pradesh Government that led to a 22% growth in farm output in the State.