Farmers have been on the boil in India
for years. The agriculture sector contributes nearly 15% of India’s USD2.9
trillion economy but employs about half of the country’s 1.3 billion people.
For decades, farmers have been driven
into debt by crop failures and inability to secure competitive prices for their
output. Hence, many had resorted to taking their own lives.
Narinder Nanu/AFP
Protests are intense in Punjab and
Haryana – India’s rice bowls. The BJP, the ruling party, introduced three
market-friendly laws. The contentious reforms will loosen rules around sale,
pricing and storage of farm produce. Currently, the Government provides
subsidies, tax exemption and crop insurance. Farmers have guaranteed prices for
23 crops. Debts are waived when they are unable to pay off loans, especially
when natural calamities strike. But the average annual income of a farming
family is around 20,000 rupees (about RM1,000). How can they survive in a
market-oriented, big corporation environment? They don’t have the “muscle” to
fight the likes of Reliance. Without safeguards on price-setting, farmers are
playing into the hands of big private players.
Agricultural market reform is political
in any part of the world. And food on your plate is never a product of a total
free market economy. That is true anywhere in the world. Reforms are needed but
it also requires consultations with stakeholders, otherwise it becomes a
violent outburst on the streets with no clear light in sight.
References:
1.
Why
Indian farmers are protesting against new farm bills, 25 Sep 2020 https://www.aljazeera.com/
2.
Soutik
Biswas, What has brought India's farmers to the streets? 3 Dec 2020
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