Driving Naari Programme launched in Chandigarh
Chandigarh, Peoples’ Party of Punjab chiefManpreet Singh Badaltoday called upon Chief Minister S. Parkash Singh Badal to ensure the implementation of theSwaminathan Committeerecommendations on minimum support price in the context of the centre having backed out from it.
“The Swaminathan Committee has recommended 50 per cent profit to the farmers over and above the cost of production while fixing the minimum support price. This was also the election promise you had made to the people in the Lok Sabha elections. However, the centre has expressed its inability in its affidavit submitted to the Supreme Court to enhance the price by that formula”, he added.
The PPP chief said Mr. Badal had the image of the champion of the farmers and the messiah now must make forceful intervention with the government at the centre in which the Akali Dal was the partner. He reminded Mr. Badal that all along during the election campaign, he had been trying to convince the people of Punjab that the state would usher in an era of prosperity once the BJP came into power. He said the issue was not just of Punjab farmers. The farm crisis was deepening all over the country and the incidence of farmers committing suicide was on the increase.
He suggested the centre should work out some sort of balanced arrangement in which the interests of both the producer as well as the consumer were protected. The problem with the farm sector was that there was no control on the prices of input but the same was not the case with the output and as such, the terms of trade were not in favour of the farmers.
He said there were other ways to check inflation in food items as it was not just the MSP that was responsible for the situation. Under the present system of marketing, it was the middleman who was pocketing major profits adding to inflation which at times had been artificial.
He urged the Punjab Chief Minister to make at least one positive contribution to the economy by convincing his own government of the need to consider the plight of the farmers and get the Swaminathan Committee recommendations implemented. He said the promises made by the political parties should not be just to show dreams to the people to get votes but the same should also be implemented.
