Dr Nishant A.Irudayadason

Professor of Philosophy and Ethics, Jnana-Deepa Vidyapeeth, Pune.

Three major bills concerning the agricultural sector have been passed by parliament despite demands for revision from almost all opposition parties, demonstrations by farmers and the resignation of the Minister of Food Processing Industries, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, whose party disagrees with the government on this matter. Since the publication of the ordinances of three laws on agricultural reform in July, the Indian farmers’ associations have opposed them. Farmers in Punjab and Haryana demonstrated with their tractors and the Punjab Assembly passed a resolution on August 28 rejecting these ordinances. New protests were also held, including a blockade of the highway to Delhi that goes through Haryana.
Agriculture, with all other associated sectors (seeds, fertilizers, and tractors), is the main source of income for a large part of the Indian population.70% of households in rural areas depend on agriculture for their daily needs and 82% of farmers have small farms. According to the Indian Constitution, legislation regarding the agricultural sector is left to state governments, but the national government can intervene if it considers it to be in the best interests of the nation. The new laws aim to create a single agricultural market under the slogan: “One India, One agriculture market.” It was this intervention by the central government in an area considered within the competence of the States that triggered the opposition movements against the agricultural laws of 2020.
The three bills on agricultural reform are the following: 1. The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, seeks to open the agriculture market beyond the Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMC) regulated markets so that farmers can sell their produce anywhere to anyone. However, APMCs are governed by state laws; therefore, the new bill seeks to bypass the issue. 2. The amendment to the Essential Commodities Act removes some of the specific items from the list of products on which it may be invoked. 3. The third new Bill, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020, seeks to empower farmers by facilitating contract farming.
Until now, the sale of agricultural products was regulated by the APMC managed by the State governments. In each state, APMCs act as intermediaries between producers and buyers. One of the objectives of the current reform is to liberalize the marketing of agricultural products by allowing producers to sell their harvest directly and no longer only through the APMCs. Several states have already done so, amending their APMC laws, and some have allowed regulated private commerce, including direct marketing. But in Haryana and Punjab, the system of APMCs and licenses to practice there is recognized and regarded as reliable by the entire local agricultural sector. In addition, farmers fear the disappearance of the guaranteed price, the Minimum Support Price, which was set by the government and is nowhere mentioned in the new laws. They wonder if they will not find themselves at the mercy of the big food companies when negotiating buy-sell contracts, especially since the majority of Indian farmers are smallholders.
Finally, the amendment to the law on basic necessities removes cereals, vegetables, oil seeds, edible oils, onions and potatoes from the list of these products. It deregulates their production, storage, movement and distribution. Any imposition of a storage cap will be based on the price increase. This could affect the food security of states as they will no longer have any information on the availability of stocks in the state. It is important to note that the onion export ban imposed a couple of weeks ago by the national government contradicts the reform voted on the following Sunday. Despite the government’s claims, not one of these bills benefit farmers in any way. However, as the text in the bills note, they will help traders, especially big corporations. Together, these ordinances are targeted at usurping state powers, and overriding state laws and market committees. Farmers have become the latest pawns in a wider game of power based on an old idea of divide and rule. Every farmer knows we can only reap what we sow! The seeds being sown by the new agriculture Bills do not promise a good harvest.