Farmers of the country, especially of Punjab and Haryana, are struggling for legal guarantee of MSP from 2020. The combined farmers’ unions protested at Delhi border for more than 13 months during 2020-21 to get repealed the three anti-farmer agricultural bills, wherein more than 700 farmers had to lose their lives.  Still the farmers of these two states are on a sit-in at Shambhu and Khanauri borders for the last seven months, as per media reports. The organisers of this protest have declared their further course of action to hold a Maha Panchayat at Pipali in Kurukshetra, Haryana on September 22, 2024.

Both the major parties of India- BJP as well Congress slam each other and claim itself the only well-wisher and the real protector of the farmers, but who is the real one, is the question that requires answer and analysis.

Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Rural Development Shivraj Singh Chouhan, on 14 September, said that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi is farmer friendly and agriculture and farmers welfare is his top priority. The Modi government has taken some big decisions in the interest of farmers.  Chouhan said that farmer the friendly Modi government has taken a decision to increase the import duty on edible oils from 0% to 20% and on adding other components, the total effective duty will be 27.5%.

On September 14, 2024, while addressing a Haryana assembly election rally in Kurukshetra, a stronghold of farmers’ movement, the Prime Minister Narender Modi, attacking the congress, alleged that it did not care for farmers, and ‘extended false promises’ and spread ‘anarchy’. 

Reporting the version of PM Modi in Kurukshetra rally, ‘The Hindu’, an esteemed English daily posted on its web portal, “The Congress has never been bothered about the problems of the people. There is no other party in the country that is more dishonest and deceitful than the Congress. The Congress talks big for farmers, shows them big dreams. It’s nothing but a lie. These people make so much noise about minimum support price (MSP), whereas it is in Haryana, where the BJP is in power, that 24 crops are purchased at MSP. I challenge, if Congress has the guts, why doesn’t it implement its farmer schemes in Karnataka and Telangana, where the Congress is in power? How many crops do they buy at MSP in Karnataka and Telangana? All development work in Karnataka and Telangana has come to a standstill. Congress is a dishonest party.”

While giving the details of Union Cabinet decision about the approval in the increase in the Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for all mandated Kharif Crops for Marketing Season 2024-25, which was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi , a PIB release dated June 19,2024, divulged that during the period 2003-04 to 2013-14 for 14 crops covered under Kharif Marketing Season, the minimum absolute increase in MSP was Rs.745/- per quintal for Bajra and maximum absolute increase was Rs.3,130/- per quintal for Moong while during the period 2013-14 to 2023-24, the minimum absolute increase in MSP was Rs.780/- per quintal for Maize and maximum absolute increase was Rs.4,234/- per quintal for Nigerseed.

The release further claimed that the increase in MSP for Kharif Crops for Marketing Season 2024-25 is in line with the Union Budget 2018-19 announcement of fixing the MSP at a level of at least 1.5 times of the All-India weighted average cost of production, The expected margin to farmers over their cost of production are estimated to be highest in case of bajra (77%) followed by tur (59%), maize (54%) and urad (52%). For the rest of the crops, margin to farmers over their cost of production is estimated to be at 50%.

On the other hand, stating the claims of BJP as hollow claims about MSP, the General Secretary of the All-India Congress Committee, former Union Minister, and MP from Sirsa, Kumari Selja alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) governments at the centre have not been able to raise the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of crops even once compared to Congress. Neither the Vajpayee government nor the Modi government, which has been in power for the past ten years, has paid any attention to farmers. Even the BJP government in Haryana has never advocated for increasing the MSP. Whereas, the Manmohan Singh-led Congress government demonstrated its pro-farmer stance by raising the MSP of crops every year.

In a statement released to the media, Kumari Selja said that from 1999 to 2004, the BJP-led government only increased the price of paddy by 14%, which amounted to an annual increase of just 2.3%. In contrast, under the Manmohan Singh government, the MSP of paddy was increased by a total of 143%, or 14.3% annually. Since 2014, the Modi government has only raised paddy prices by 54.1%, equating to an annual increase of 6%.

The former Union Minister said that between 1999 and 2004, the BJP Alliance government increased the MSP of wheat by just 10.3%, with an annual increase of 1.7%. However, during the Congress-led Manmohan Singh government, the MSP of wheat saw a 126% increase, or 12.7% annually. In comparison, the Modi government has increased it by only 39.3% in ten years, compared to the Congress’s 126%.

Kumari Selja further said that the Manmohan Singh government not only increased the MSP of rice and wheat but also raised the prices of all crops by 150-200%, or two and a half to three times.

In contrast, the Modi government has barely increased MSP by 50%, while the cost of farming has increased several times during this period. Taxes have been imposed on farming-related goods and equipment. The former minister pointed out that the Congress government never imposed taxes on agriculture, while the Modi government reduced the weight of fertilizer bags from 50 kg to 40 kg and decreased the nitrogen content, leading to increased usage and expenses for farmers. Electricity prices for farmers have risen, and despite cheaper crude oil, diesel prices have not been reduced, further increasing the cost of farming. This shows that the BJP government has consistently conspired to empty the pockets of farmers, said Kumari Selja.

Why the Farmers not satisfied with the Government’s MSP?

The central government claims that while calculating the MSP, it considers  all expenditures and includes all paid out costs such as those incurred on account of hired human labour, bullock labour/machine labour, rent paid for leased in land, expenses incurred on use of material inputs like seeds, fertilizers, manures, irrigation charges, depreciation on implements and farm buildings, interest on working capital, diesel/electricity for operation of pump sets etc., miscellaneous expenses and imputed value of family labour.

Farmers say that the government sets MSP at 1.5 times the Cost of Production (CoP), where Cop is A2+FL. The Swaminathan Commission, however, suggests that CoP should be based on C2, proposing the ‘C2+50 per cent’ formula for setting MSP. The commission recommended that the MSP should be 1.5 times the farmers’ input costs.

For the calculation of input costs, however, the Swaminathan Commission laid down a different formula. Along with the paid-out cost (A2) and the imputed value of family labour (FL), also included the interest on the value of owned capital assets, rent paid for leased-in land, or the rental value of owned land (C2).

Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmers’ unions says that the Haryana Chief Minister had attempted to misguide the farmers by falsely claiming MSP for 24 crops consciously hiding the fact that the procurement rate is not based on C2+50% but on the current rate of A2+FL+50%.

How does a loss occur to the farmers due to A2+FL+50%?  The SKM calculates that the C2+50% rate of paddy, one of the major crops of Haryana, is Rs.3012/qntl while the current rate (as per A2+FL+50%.) is Rs. 2300/qntl, means less by Rs.712/qntl. Paddy farmers alone in Haryana had a loss of Rs.3851.90 crore in the year 2023-24.

If we rely on the calculations by SKM as per C2+50% formula, we can assess how a huge loss is being burdened on the farmers.

Now question arises—if the BJP government is so anxious about the farmers’ interests and the claim of the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Rural Development Shivraj Singh Chouhan, that “The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is farmer friendly and agriculture and farmers welfare is his top priority, has some truth, then why despite unprecedented repression resorting to on farmers during the 13 months agitation in which 750 agitating farmers reportedly lost their lives, MSP guarantee is not being legalised as per farmers’ demand?

And why are the farmers  opposing the BJP party in Haryana assembly elections?  

It is pertinent to mention here that the Haryana Sanyukta Kisan Morcha has decided to expose the anti-farmer and anti-people BJP rule during the forthcoming state assembly elections.  In a meeting of the Morcha a review of the announcements about MSP made recently by Haryana Chief minister was undertaken and found that these were just election gimmicks to overcome the anger of farmers and other sections.

The question still stands, “Have the farmers forgotten the repression resorting to on farmers during the 13 months agitation in which hundreds of agitating farmers lost their lives, as stated by SKM?”

Answer comes in ‘No’. Haryana and Punjab Farmers are still on agitation and   a Maha panchayat at new grain market in Jind’s Uchana Kalan, on September 15,2024, held under the banner of Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political) pressing for their demands of a legal guarantee for minimum support price (MSP) on all crops.

While addressing the congregation, farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal, as reported by Hindustan Times website, reminded, “As many as 833 farmers had sacrificed their lives in the farmers’ protest in 2020-21 and 33 farmers died in the ongoing agitation. Our struggle is not to make MPs or MLAs but to protect the future of farmers and labourers. We ask you to vote against the party which has used batons on us,” he added.

Will someone listen to the screaming voice of the farmers? Or the painful voice, of the food giver to the country, will remain ignored and suppressed by political tricks and sticks? Why is the ruling party not heeding towards the resentment of the farmers? Is it not caring for the vote bank of this aggrieved strata? However, it is crystal clear that presently the winds blowing over the Haryana ground do not seem favourable for the BJP. Let us see which way the wind blows in the coming days. 

Jag Mohan Thaken is a Senior Journalist, Columnist & Political Analyst, views are personal