The Union government should implement the M.S. Swaminathan report on ensuring remunerative pricing for farm produce, Maruti Manpade, Karnataka Pranta Raitha Sangha president, said here on Sunday. He was speaking at a meeting of farmers at the Bidar Sahakari Sakkare Karakhane in Hallikhed village in Humnabad taluk.
“This will ensure that farmers will get at least 50 per cent more than the cost of cultivation. But the Union government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has submitted an affidavit in the Supreme Court that such prices cannot be assured,” Mr. Manpade alleged. He opposed the Rangarajan committee which he said had submitted an “anti-farmer” report.
He also urged the Union and State governments to distribute sugar along with grains through the public distribution system, to create internal demand. Whenever production is high and prices are low, the government should ensure farmers get the right price, he said.
He said that sugarcane was grown on 4.5 lakh hectares in the State, and factories had crushed 48 lakh tonnes of sugarcane. But the factory managements were yet to pay arrears of Rs. 2,124 crore to farmers. The government should take action against them, he said.
“Factory owners say running sugar factories is a loss-making business. This cannot be true. If it were true, then why would individuals and companies submit applications to the State government to open 40 new sugar factories in the state?”, he questioned.
His demands included forming a farmer welfare policy in consultation with farmers’ groups, hiking compensation to families of farmers who committed suicide to Rs. 10 lakh, hiking import duty on sugar to 45 per cent, levying 15 per cent interest on arrears to be paid by sugar factories, complete waiver of farm loans, easy access to low interest loans to farmers and advance announcement of fair and remunerative price including cost of cutting and transport.
Farmers’ associations would observe a Bidar bandh on September 2 and sit on a dharna in front of the residence of the local Member of Parliament, he said.