Jai Jawan Jai Kisan is a famous slogan, we have heard it. But how much care we do about our famers can be predicted by the way that our government has made ordinances for famers. Government has made three ordinances for the farmers. The farmers strongly opposed these ordinances. Especially the farmers of Haryana and Punjab made a road protest.
Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) along with other famer’s organization ask for the permission of road protest to the government of India. But on 10th September BJP Led state government of Haryana deny this request by saying that the present pandemic situation doesn’t allow this protest. After this many farmers came on road along with their tractors and show a strong protest against these ordinances. They made a slogan of “ Kisan Bachao Mandi Bachao” . In many places this protest changes into violent situation and there were lathicharge on famers by police.
When India got its freedom, the distribution system of agriculture was the under of the Money Lenders and Traders. Farmers had no easy way to sell their cultivation in the market. They were dependent in these Lenders who exploit these farmers. The farmers were perpetually under debt and face many problems. To solve this problem government of that time introduce Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC). Government decided that at state level we would made a special areas known as “Market Areas” and it will had market jurisdiction. By this the no farmer or trader are allow to sell or bought anything by their own choice of price. Any trader who will come to this market to bought anything from the farmers, they first need a license known as Trade License. Also the farmers will be provided by a Minimum Support Price (MSP). It means that the farmers now can sell their things by their own minimum prices.
When the farmers were raising their slogan of ‘’ Mandi Bachao’’ in Haryana, they mean that we need to guard this APMC. But as we know if there is a positive part of something there is also negative side of that thing. Same is the case with this committee which could be said as flaws of APMC. The market committee has now some more powers to give license to the traders as it could be said as ‘’license raj’’. Secondly those who bought things from the farmers start making their cartels. Now the traders and licensed committee made a settlement that the price will be selected among them and not by the farmers.
After the ordinances of Modi Government now the famers can sell their produce any where they want. Also the government called it ‘’ one nation one market’’. In this ordinances there will be no tax over the sales and purchases outside this APMC area. Now the farmers oppose this by saying that in APMC are everything is regulated and every transaction is taken over accounts but outside this MSP never exist outside the APMC. AS per the famers this ordinance will corporatize the agriculture. Big companies can set their monopolies in Indian agriculture setup and there will be more easy to exploit the famers.
Syed Khalid Niyazi Shah is an author at The Chenab Times.