Farmers on Monday launched an indefinite dharna under the aegis of the Karnataka Raita Sena demanding minimum support price (MSP) for crops here.
In Dharwad, sena head Viresh Sobaradmath is leading the agitation in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office. A similar protest would be subsequently held in front of all the district administration offices across the State, the protesters said.
Mr. Sobaradmath said that both the Union and State governments have remained indifferent to the plight of the farmers in the State, particularly those in North Karnataka.
The farmers condition is deplorable due to natural vagaries. After a series of drought for four years, flash floods last year created havoc in North Karnataka. The hopes of farmers who invested in their fields borrowing loans from banks and private moneylenders have been washed away in the floods. The condition of farmers is highly sensitive and if it is not solved, it will spell doom for the agriculture sector in the State, he said.
Overcoming all odds of nature, some farmers have grown crops but again unscientific pricing by traders and dalals in the APMCs has hit them hard. As a majority of gram panchayats do not have scientific foodgrains-storing godowns, the farmers are forced to sell their produce early. Encashing on this, the traders in the APMCs have been duping the farmers by quoting poor prices for their crops.
Due to this, the farmers are unable to get even the invested amount and are left in the lurch, he said.
Mr. Sobaradmath demanded that the government take steps and announce minimum support price for crops to protect farmers from the clutches of traders and merchants. The Centre has announced minimum support price for six crops — green gram ₹ 6,975, cotton ₹ 5,450, black gram ₹ 5,600, maize ₹ 1,700, wheat ₹ 1,840 and Bengal gram ₹ 4,620. However, this cannot be considered scientific because farmers have invested more money to raise these crops. Therefore, the State government should announce additional support price over the minimum support price announced by the Union government, he said.
The minimum support price for green gram should be fixed at ₹ 9,975 per quintal, ₹ 7,450 per quintal for cotton, ₹ 8,600 per quintal for black gram, ₹ 2,700 per quintal for maize, ₹ 2,800 per quintal for wheat and ₹ 7,620 per quintal for Bengal gram. The minimum support price should be ₹ 3,570 per quintal for jowar, ₹ 7,650 for sunflower and ₹ 8,000 for safflower seeds, he added.
He further said that the officials are hand-in-glove with traders and the procurement centres are opened only after farmers sell their crops. Therefore, the government should take steps to open procurement centres well in advance in the taluk and hobli level, Mr. Sobaradmath said.
