New Delhi: Jairam Ramesh, a General Secretary of the Congress, delineated several prominent shortcomings of the BJP government’s agricultural policies, which he characterized as “particularly detrimental” and “self-evident”.
“Among the myriad failings of the Modi Administration, the sheer ineptitude and malevolence exhibited by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare stand out as particularly detrimental and glaring,” expressed the esteemed Congress member in a communication on ‘X’.
Labeling the Goods and Services Tax (GST) as “coercive”, Ramesh highlighted that the exorbitant GST rates create a burden for farmers by inflating the costs of agricultural necessities such as tractors and fertilizers.
“The structure of the GST has been wholly antagonistic to farmers. Owing to the GST, virtually every essential input for farmers has witnessed an escalation in prices… within the purview of the GST, the tax rate on tractors has surged to 12%, while the GST on tractor tires stands at 18% and spare parts at 28%. Simultaneously, fertilizer has been subjected to a 5% tax under GST, coupled with elevated GST on fertilizer components like ammonia, fixed at 18%…,” explicated the Congress luminary.
Ramesh also underscored that by permitting inexpensive imports, the Narendra Modi administration complicates the exportation of agricultural goods for farmers. “This detrimentally affects India’s farmers – not only are they deprived of equitable market prices for their produce, but capricious export prohibitions impede their ability to strategize their cultivation effectively,” he remarked.
The senior Congress leader further noted that over Rs 1 lakh crore earmarked for the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has been “relinquished” due to underutilization. Ramesh also invalidated Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pledge to “double farmers’ income” between 2016 and 2022, asserting that achieving this objective would necessitate an annual growth in farmer incomes exceeding 12% over the entire six-year period.
“..as per the latest NSSO SAS report, real farm income grew just 2.8% per year from 2015-16 to 2018-19,” the Congress General Secretary highlighted.
Drawing attention to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government’s inadequate increments in Minimum Support Price (MSP) for farmers and failure to implement the Swaminathan Commission Report, Ramesh remarked, “While the UPA augmented MSP for wheat by 119% and paddy by 134%, the Modi Administration has only elevated it by 47% and 50% respectively.”
Regarding PM Modi’s unsuccessful endeavors in crop diversification, Ramesh observed that the cultivation area for paddy has expanded by two million hectares since 2014, while the acreage for millets has dwindled by three million hectares since 2014. Shedding light on the nation’s reliance on imported edible oils, the senior Congress leader noted that despite more than 56% of edible oils being sourced from imports, the production of oilseeds has only experienced a meager annual growth of 1.8% since 2014.
Expounding on the escalating indebtedness and suicides among farmers, Ramesh remarked, “Firstly, farmer indebtedness has skyrocketed. Since 2013, outstanding loans have surged by 58%, according to the NSSO. More than half of our farmers are ensnared in debt. Secondly, since 2014, we have witnessed over 1 lakh farmers succumb to suicide.”
Addressing the Kisaan Nyay guarantees announced by the Congress, Ramesh affirmed that his party pledges a legal assurance of MSP based on the Swaminathan formula, establishment of a permanent Loan Waiver Commission for farmers, guaranteed insurance payouts within 30 days of crop loss, a stable import-export policy to benefit farmers, and exemption of GST on farming inputs.