SC panel report on repeal of farm laws

SC panel report on repeal of farm laws

Subject: Polity

Section: Msc

Context: Repeal of farm laws was unfair to a silent majority of farmers who supported the reforms says the SC report.

Concept:

Background:

• The farm laws were repealed by the Parliament on November 2021 after farmers from various parts of UP, Haryana and Punjab staged a protest on the Delhi outskirts over a year from 2020.
• The SC in January 2021 stayed the farm laws and appointed the committee with four members to submit its report on the farm reform laws. However, a representative from Bharatiya Kisan Sangh withdrew following pressure from the agitating farmers.

Findings and Recommendations of the report:

• Over 85% of Farmer Organizations (over 3.3 Cr growers) favoured the reforms said the three- member committee.
• The committee recommended for setting up an Agriculture Marketing council (on the lines of GST Council) headed by the Union Agriculture minister.
• It also called for revisiting the MSP policy and a cap on procurement of wheat and rice commensurate with the needs of the PDS.
• The savings from this capping may be utilized to enhance prize stabilization fund for other commodities- nutri-cereals, pulses, oilseeds, and even onion and potatoes on open market principles.
• It suggested an option to give freedom of choice to beneficiaries of PDS to choose cash transfers equivalent to MSP + 25% for every kg of grain equivalent or get it in kind (wheat or rice).
• Moreover, a concrete road map for crop diversification from paddy to more sustainable high value crops in the Punjab- Haryana belt to be formulated with adequate budgetary resources from Union and respective State Governments.
• It wanted the center to “substantially liberalize” the provisions of Essential Commodities Act.
• Flexibility for States:
• Develop modules to convert existing agricultural produce marketing committees to revenue-generating entities by making them hubs for agri-business with better marketing facilities.
• With prior approval of the Centre, some flexibility is given to the States in the implementation and design of the laws
• Alternative mechanism for dispute settlement via civil courts (“Farmers Courts” under the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 at the district level) or arbitration mechanism be provided to stakeholders by the state govt
• Freeing from “constraining regulations” and take urgent steps towards strengthening agricultural infrastructure, enabling aggregation, assaying and quality sorting of agri-produce through cooperatives and FPOs and closer interaction between farmers and other stakeholders.
• So, it has been said that if the report of the committee would have had published before repeal of the laws, farmers would have realized how their income would have had increased (5-25%).