NEW DELHI: Amid continued protests by some agricultural organizations, the Prime Minister Narendra modi on Sunday he vigorously defended the new farm laws, saying the changes complied with long-pending demands from the agriculture sector and that a new set of rights for farmers had also started to pay off.
In his monthly ‘Mann ki Baat’ radio address, the prime minister said the reforms had opened doors to new possibilities and urged those who study and research agriculture to go to the villages and raise awareness of the new laws aimed offer more sales options and also establish rules to protect farmers.
The prime minister also offered greetings in Guru Nanak Jayanti which falls on Monday and while the greetings weren’t out of place, the current turmoil that is heavily driven by Punjab farmers gave it additional context. He said that the government had performed the work of a “servant” (sevak) and the Guru Sahib gave him the opportunity to serve. Although Modi often mentions important festivals, his speech just one day before the 551st Prakash Parva of Guru Nanak it is seen as an outreach to the Sikh farming community.
“After much deliberation, the Indian Parliament gave the agricultural reforms legal recognition. These reforms have not only served to free our farmers, but have also provided them with new rights and opportunities. In a short time, these new rights have begun to address the sufferings of our farmers, ”Modi said.
His comments, the first detailed references since farmers from Punjab and Haryana arrived in Delhi, indicated that while the Center could seek ways and means to address concerns from agricultural organizations that the MSP will be phased out or large corporations will establish prices of agricultural products. , is not likely to reverse the new laws.
The prime minister gave a number of examples, including that of Jitendra Bhoiji, a farmer from Dhule in Maharashtra who was not paid for his maize crop for four months, and how new laws came to his aid. The new rules make it clear that farmers must be paid within three days, he said. “Whatever the field, correct knowledge, free from misconceptions and hearsay, can act as a force multiplier for each individual,” he added.
The prime minister said that Bhoiji did not receive several lakhs of quotas for his crop that he had sold after receiving an advance of just 25,000 rupees. He used a recently enacted legal provision that guarantees farmers receive their quotas and filed a complaint with SDM. Within days, the outstanding amount was paid.
“Buy the crop from the farmer, keep the payment pending for months; probably this was the long-standing tradition that corn buyers were following, ”said the prime minister.
Modi also cited two other examples, from Mohammad Aslam from Baran in Rajasthan, an executive director of a local agricultural producer organization (FPO), who has created a WhatsApp farmer group to inform them about prevailing mandi rates. He said corporate heads would be surprised to learn that even FPOs have CEOs. Modi cited Virendra yadav from Kaithal, who had done business for Rs 2 million in two years selling agricultural stubble to agroenergy plants and paper mills using straw packing machines.
He said that Guru Nanak’s influence was visible around the world and that he was “given the opportunity” to help restore Lakhpat Gurdwara Sahib in Kutch after it was damaged in the 2001 earthquake. He referred to the opening of the Kartarpur Sahib corridor as a historical event.
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