Badal urges Centre to continue MSP regime

The Punjab CM says any change in this could lead to a serious unrest among farmers

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Thursday impressed upon Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh to continue the minimum support price (MSP) regime for procurement.

Badal met Singh at Krishi Bhavan in New Delhi. He said for revival of agriculture sector, the continuation of procurement at MSP was the need of the hour.

He also said any change in this could lead to a serious unrest among farmers. Badal asked the minister to make necessary recommendations to the concerned quarters for continuing the system of price support mechanism to farmers.

Pleading the case of implementing Swaminathan's formula, which includes cost and 50 per cent profit, the chief minister said it was one of the viable solution to spur a turnaround in the agriculture economy of the country. He said it was also the major issue of National Democratic Alliance's agenda.

Badal also said for the success of crop diversification program, the Centre must evolve a mechanism for procurement of alternative crops such as maize and basmati by providing MSP to them.

Seeking crop insurance scheme for the farmers to protect them from vagaries of nature and climate change, the chief minister said it was the need of the hour, as due to squeezing margins of profit, agriculture was no longer a profitable venture now.

He also urged the Union minister to revise the norms for relief of damage to crops due to natural calamities thereby re-fixing compensation in case of complete crop loss to at least Rs 20,000 an acre instead of existing Rs 3,600 an acre, which was too meagre and inadequate.