Farmers' struggle forced Centre to hike MSP: Yogendra Yadav

Farmers' struggle forced Centre to hike MSP: Yogendra Yadav

Yogendra Yadav. (Photo: IANS)

New Delhi, July 4 (IANS) Swaraj India leader Yogendra Yadav on Wednesday said that a "historic struggle" by the farmers "forced" the government to hike Minimum Support Price (MSP) for Kharif crops, though it is "not the price" what Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised before 2014 Lok sabha elections.

"The MSP announcements of Kharif 2018-19 is a small victory for farmers. In this election year, the Modi Government has been forced to partially act, at least on paper, on the promise of remunerative MSP that it had made before the previous election," Yadav said in a statement.

Finding flaws with the MSP announcement, he said that the announced MSP has not been "computed at 50 per cent above comprehensive cost (C2) being demanded by farmers' organisations.

"It is not the price promised by PM Modi in hundreds of election meetings and contained in the 2014 election manifesto of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)."

He also raised concern over implementation of the decision, saying: "It is not an immediate relief to farmers, it is merely a promise, the fulfilment of which depends on government procurement and intensive support, something that has been lacking till now."

Stressing to make MSP as a legal right, he said that unless MSP is prepared as a legal right, for enforcement, it remains "discretionary" and farmers will be left at the "mercy" of the next government.

Drawing a comparison between the UPA II and NDA governments, Avik Saha, National Convenor of Jai Kisan Andolan, in a statement said: "There is nothing historic or substantial about the MSP hike - it is in fact lower than the hikes given by UPA II government, in respect of almost all crops. For paddy, while the average hike provided by the UPA II was 69 per cent, the Modi government's hike is only 41 per cent."

--IANS

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