Maybe the most important feature of Indian agriculture is summarized by economist magazines in the 2018 article – our government provides subsidies to farmers worth $ 30 billion per year, which mostly do not reach them, and then take more – around $ 40 billion – by denying market prices for their products. This market restriction emerged through the essential commodity law and foreign trade barriers. For example, export prohibitions are almost always applied when international prices rise.
Estimates for the past 30 years by the government and independent economists confirm that farmers’ income can increase by a minimum of 5 percent and up to 25 percent per year if market restrictions are removed. But there are other components of farmers’ losses that have not been calculated: opportunity costs of restrictions on property rights which include the seizure of their land (in many cases without compensation due), limits on their land ownership measure, and restrictions on use, sales, and rentals their land. This loss may exceed $ 20 billion per year. Both market restrictions and protected properties in the ninth constitutional schedule, far from judicial supervision.
When the agricultural procedure first came out in June 2020, farmers throughout India were optimistic that at least some of their annual losses from market restrictions would subside. While the agricultural law does not discuss the majority of the dangers applied by the government in farmers, they will allow a little more market choice.
But the socialists and communists, who said that this law will lead to the elimination of the minimum support price (MSP), able to affect some farmers. Agricultural law does not say anything about MSP. However, positive subsidies must not be reduced before removing all negative subsidies. However, agitation was deposited and on January 12, 2021, the Supreme Court continued to carry out agricultural laws and appoint a committee to listen to farmers’ complaints. I was honored to be included in the committee as President Shetkari Sanghatana, the farmer organization began in the 1970s by Sharad Joshi, who had struggled for more than four decades of ‘socialist suppression’.
A dead effort
The Supreme Court has requested “representatives of all farmers’ bodies, whether they hold protests or not and whether they support or oppose the law” to “participate in the Committee’s deliberation and reveal their point of view”. Unfortunately, nervous farmers were not involved with the committee. However, we take into account all their worries, which are well-known through the media and through a briefing from government officials.
Of the 73 farmer organizations representing more than 3.83 crore farmers engaged to us, 61 (representing 3.3 Crore farmers), fully supporting agricultural law. The most nervous farmers come from Punjab and North India where MSP plays an important role. The farmers who are not nervous and engaged to us don’t talk much about MSP, who don’t play a role in their lives. For example, as a farmer, I have never sold anything in MSP. But even though MSP was not in the scope of the committee, we spent some time checking this problem.