By
Nabeel Masood, II Year of B.A.,LL.B(Hons), from Aligarh Muslim university
AGRICULTURAL FARM BILLS 2020
1) FARMERS ( FACILITATION AND PROMOTION) PRODUCE AND COMMERCE TRADE BILLS
2) FARMERS ( PROTECTION AND EMPOWERMENT) AGREEMENT OF PRICE ASSURANCE AND FARM SERVICES BILL 2020
3) ESSENTIAL COMMODITIES (AMENDMENT) BILL 2020
The Above-mentioned bills are the government bills which have got the assent of the president and are being considered as revolutionary bills by the MODI LED NDA government which aim at reducing the interference of the middlemen and promote the farmers to deal with the corporates and the dealers in the market. As the LOK SABHA passes two agricultural bills with the help of a voice note. And have managed to get the assent of the president. The minister of agriculture NARENDRA SINGH TOMAR has announced that the forthcoming farmer bill is not going to impact the MINIMUM SUPPORT PRICE and will provide the ownership of land as a defence to the farmers interest. The bill will become a law as soon as it is passed by the upper house (BJP WILL MANAGE TO GET TO THE MAJORITY VOTE IN THE UPPER HOUSE ACCORDING TO THE MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE ).
HISTORY OF FARM BILLS
Farm bills were first introduced in the 1960 to formulate and organize the national farming associations so that the Indian farmers can get some fixed amount of money which would be disclosed before the cropping season so that the farmers can easily produce without having much pressure on their shoulders for their convenience. They were also made familiar with state regulated markets. This helped a lot and, as a result of which, our nation successfully managed to get GREEN REVOLUTION. And father of green revolution was M SWAMINATHAN
WHAT ARE THE REASONS BEHIND FORMULATING THESE BILLS?
It is being said by the government that the farm bills have been formed for the benefit of the farmers.
1) The government has started this bill for the development of agricultural sectors across the nation .
2) It will help in the development of the nation by increased investment and reducing the cost of the middlemen. It will also lead to the development of a greater infrastructure by increasing the income of the farmers .
3) The government has tried helping the farmers oblivious of the negotiation procedure , and the bill will help them to get a better price for their products .
4) The government further says that farmers don’t need to invest hefty amounts in the technology.
5) This bill further advocates the farmers to sell their produce out of the APMC(MANDI) wherever they feel like selling their products for a better price .
6) From this bill the farmers shall get a good amount for their produce by cutting all unnecessary costs including the transportation cost .
7) Through these farm bills all the states will lose their mandi fees and commissions 8) The farmers have got the right to work on a contract basis and get paid really well for the fulfillment of contract .
9) ESSENTIAL COMMODITIES AMENDMENT BILL 2020 tries to put an end to all the prior essential commodities such as pulses , cereals , etc .
10) The bill tries to end the black marketing and hoarding of all the commodities until there is an extra ordinary circumstance .
WHO ARE ALL PROTESTING?
Since lok sabha has passed the bill, farmers across the nation have resorted to protest and have even blocked the roads and the passages to delhi. There has been news of scuffles breaking out between the farmers and police. Which resulted in some serious injuries on both ends, followed by some farmer suicides. The farmer’s associations across the nation have been protesting against the farm bills. Associations such as BHARTIYE KISAN UNION , a union of farmers across the nation along with the INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS, BSP, TRINAMOOL CONGRESS , DMK , AKALI DAL. The minister of food processing industries SMT HARSIMRAT KAUR BADAL has resigned and termed the bill as anti farmers, and she opines that the bill is going to ruin the farming economics of punjab ( which is the most professed profession of punjab )
WHAT DOES GOVERNMENT MEAN BY THESE BILLS?
Since these bills got passed in the lok sabha, they have been subject to widespread protest by both the political parties and the almost 200 groups of kisan union. These protests are mostly being carried out on the boundaries of the national capital.
1) FARMERS FACILITATION AND PROMOTION PRODUCE TRADE AND COMMERCE BILL 2020
In this bill the government provides all the farmers in buying and sell their crops or produce in the places other than the AGRICULTURAL PRODUCE MARKET COMMITTEE (MANDI). It advocates the system of electronic trading.
2) ESSENTIAL COMMODITIES AMENDAMENT BILL 2020.
In this bill the government provides for selling up of all the produce and prohibits the unnecessary storage of products which results in black marketing and hoarding. Except for some exceptional situations .
3) FARMERS PROTECTION AND EMPOWERMENT AGREEMENT OF PRICE ASSURANCE AND FARM SERVICES BILL 2020
In this bill it provides for the agreement of farming before the production of any crop products. As this will lead to assuring the price of all the commodities produced. And it does not look for the fixing up of prices.
EFFECTS OF FARM BILLS?
PROS OF THE FARM BILLS
1) According to the government, the bills will enhance the income of the farmers.
2) This bill doubles the income of the farmers by the year 2022. The government has also said that the farmers will get free from all the government interference and control from the market.
3) The farmers will decide on their crop price.
4) It also strengthens the intra state trade, and this will lead to decreasing the transportation price.
5) The main goal of these farm bills is to help the farmers to get enrolled with the retailers, exporters, agricultural businessmen for the sale of certain goods.
6) The main government purpose by this bill is to take advantage of all marginal as well as small scale farmers with very low or lower than 5 hectare of land.
7) This bill also replaces all the essential commodities and attractions of the FDI .
8) The buyers inside mandi misuse their powers and fix the price themselves, this bill deregulate mandis bringing a relief to the farmers.
CONS OF THE FARMERS BILL 2020
1) According to the farmers, they are unsure about the minimum support price for their crops.And with they have a trepidation of land acquired by the big sharks.
2) Farmers opine that it lands them in disadvantage by provision of more cut by the corporate players and which will further decline their profit.
3) Farmers are worried about the MSP as it is regulated in the state controlled mandi , and not with the corporate houses.
4) They are also worried about the trade fees .
5) There are some fears like the involvement of the corporate houses in the farmer market might result in the price hike due to unfair practices of money looting.
6) The corporate houses are not believed as they work on the description of the government and funding to the government in elections may result in changing of the law.
7) Due to the lack of information and knowledge, farmers might fall prey to fake contracts.
8) Wherever the markets are liberalised, the farmers think that they are cheated on by the buyers because of less price for their produce.
WHERE IS THE NATION HEADING TOWARDS?
India needs new laws in almost every sector to attract investment and employment.Almost 15% of India's income comes from agriculture, but there is a vast population depending on agriculture in india. In order to survive in the present times, we have to have new rules and regulations formed in order to enhance our development process. The government should not focus on timely political gains, rather they should focus on the long-term growth of the nation. It is the truth that our farming population is in a bad need for developed functions and developed technology with new varieties of seeds which will enhance the production process in the nation. But the framework should also help the farming community by providing them with some safeguards regarding the development of the new policies. The government should focus on providing basic knowledge of the facts of the proposed bill. The worries of the farmers are not fake as in India the corporates are on a run to land acquisition, and the news has come across many a times. The laws should not be left to linger, and the government should not focus only on helping their corporate friends. The country is on the run to be a plutocratic state where in the coming years all the wealth of the nation will be in the hands of the corporate players. The rules and regulations can be made with regards to taking some advice from the farmers too as they are the ones who are concerned about the bill and the bills directly impacts the farmers in all forms.
CONCLUSION
The farm bills are made by the government to help the farmers by increasing their income, and it also looks at the development of the nation by engaging the farmers in the export which was earlier halted by the farm laws. Contract farming and the corporates role in the farming might bring some new advanced technology which can lead to an increased growth in the market and enhance the role of the agricultural income in the national income. The widespread protest by the farmer organisation which come from all sort of political affiliations should be kept in mind and the advised changes should be met. The people across the nation who believe that these laws can lead to price hoarding should also be a dressed about their concern which helps in maintaining the legality of law . The step is good and will prove to be a boon for the farmers if the work is done as per the described law.
As M SWAMINATHAN. Says “if nothing goes right with the farmers in the nation, nothing can ever go right in the country.