It’s dark Diwali for India’s farmers thanks to Modi govt: Sonia Gandhi

Launching a bitter attack on the the Narendra Modi government on the eve of Diwali, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Saturday said that the government's anti-farmer policies have taken out the light from farmers' Diwali.

She said that the Kharif crops are selling upto 8% to 37% lower than the minimum support price (MSP), in contrast to the Modi goevrnment's oft-repeated promise of ensuring 50% profit over the input cost of crops.

"Why are crores of farmers not getting the MSP for their crops of tur, urad, soybean, sunflower seeds, sesame, millet, jwar? So much so that even the paddy farmers are getting Rs 200 per quintal less than the MSP of Rs 1835/quintal on the excuse of the paddy being wet," the Congress president said in a statement on Saturday.

She said that the Modi government has been duping the farmers ever since it has come to the power. Instead of ensuring 50% profit to famers, the government has been working for the interests of middlemen and hoarders who are huge profits at the cost of the poor farmers.

Gandhi said in FY 2019-20, the Kharif production is expected to be 140.57 million tonne, but since the farmers are getting on an average 22.5% less than the MSP, they are estimated to suffer a loss of Rs 50,000 crore in this season alone. "Who would compensate for this loss of the farmers?"

"Of the further concern is the government's decision over MSP of Rabi crops for FY 2020-21 because the government has hiked the price of Rabi crops by just 4% to 7%. On the other hand it has imposed GST on fertilizers, tractor, farm equipment and pesticides, while diesel prices are constantly going up. This is a double whammy for the farmers.

"The Congress party demands that this doulble exploitation of country's farmers must stop and they muist get the fair price of their labour and crops. This is the real raj dharma of the government," she said.