The government on Thursday fixed the Minimum Support Price for rabi crops, raising the MSP for pulses and oilseeds up to Rs 30 per quintal and leaving that for wheat unchanged at Rs 620 a quintal.
A case was registered against the truck driver who hit the tractor, killing a protesting farmer and injuring two others, a Haryana Police spokesperson said.
The new laws aim at fetching fair price for farmers' produce and give them liberty to sell it wherever they wish, the Union minister further said.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday had a meeting with Delhi Police Commissioner S N Shrivastava, ahead of the 'chakka jam' announced by farmer unions protesting against the three agri laws at Delhi's borders, sources said.
The Bharatiya Kisan Union leader, who has held a series of 'kisan mahapanchayats' in Haryana this month, also warned that the government could find it difficult to stay in power if the new agri-marketing laws are not repealed.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday released its manifesto for the November 17 Madhya Pradesh elections promising MSP for wheat at Rs 2,700 per quintal and paddy at Rs 3,100 and houses for beneficiaries of the state's flagship scheme 'Ladli Bahna'.
'The policy is to consolidate farming into the hands of a few and to take away the food security of the country.' 'Once food is in the hands of 15 chosen corporate houses, you will get food, but at a price that they determine.'
Farmers from various parts of the country are protesting at Delhi borders against the three farm laws brought by the Centre, alleging that the legislations will hamper farming.
In the coming few weeks, agriculture markets in North and Central India will be full of wheat, mustard, and chana - the three main rabi crops grown in these parts. Not only will the price trajectory of these determine the course of food inflation in the months to come, but it could also have a wider impact on the rural economy in the main growing states for these crops. Wheat and chana are largely grown in Madhya Pradesh (MP).
Nearly eight months after the government repealed the three controversial farm Acts, it has constituted a high-powered panel under the chairmanship of former agriculture secretary Sanjay Agarwal to make the minimum support price (MSP) mechanism more effective and transparent as promised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his televised address announcing the repeal. The names of three members from the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), the main grouping that spearheaded the year-long agitation at Delhi's borders, have been withheld, pending receipt by the government, stated a gazette notification. NITI Aayog member Ramesh Chand, Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad Professor Sukhpal Singh, Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative chairman Dilip Sanghani, secretaries of the Departments of Agriculture, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Food and Consumer Affairs, Cooperation and Textiles, along with representatives from the state governments of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, and Odisha will also form part of the panel.
Data compiled by National Collateral Management Services (NCML, a non-government body) shows a 6.3 per cent rise to 109 million tonnes (mt). The Union ministry of agriculture's first advance estimate was 100.5 mt, as compared to 102 mt in last year's fourth advance estimate.
'I want to ask Modiji is the support price announced by him good enough to make a farmer's sons to start farming in their villages?' 'Can he swear by Bharat Mata and say that is true?'
The party asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi why a conspiracy was being hatched to destroy the minimum support price (MSP) system and snatch the livelihood of 62 crore farmers.
The Centre will promote Kisan Drones, chemical-free natural farming, public-private partnerships for the delivery of digital and high-tech services to farmers across the country during the financial year 2022-23, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday. Presenting the Budget 2022-23 in Parliament, Sitharaman said the inclusive development is one of the four priorities of the government moving forward. As part of the inclusive development, the government will promote the use of 'Kisan Drones' for crop assessment, digitisation of land records and spraying of insecticides. The government will also facilitate a fund with blended capital raised under the co-investment model through Nabard to finance agri start-ups and rural enterprises, she said.
The Congress on Friday promised that if the party is voted to power in Gujarat, where assembly elections are due by the yearend, it would waive farm loans of up to Rs 3 lakh and provide free electricity for 10 hours daily to farmers in the state.
He also said that most of the farmers were "satisfied" with the steps taken by the central government, and added that their interests were "safe and secure" in its hands.
Thousands of farmers are protesting on various borders of Delhi since November 26, seeking repeal of three farm laws enacted in September.
During their last meeting on Thursday also, the farmer leaders had their own lunch, tea and even water.
A 21-year-old farmer was killed and a few others injured following a clash between security personnel and protesting farmers at Khanauri on the Punjab-Haryana border.
Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea will roll out revised mobile service tariffs increasing rates in the range of 10-24 per cent from the first week of July. Bharti Airtel announced a 10-21 per cent hike in prepaid and postpaid mobile tariffs from July 3, a day after larger rival Reliance Jio announced an increase in rates. Later in the day, loss-making telecom operator Vodafone Idea (Vi) also announced its plan to raise mobile tariffs by 11-24 per cent from July 4.
Addressing a press conference in Chandigarh, the deputy chief minister said, "I believe that many amendments should be there. On this, we have given many suggestions to the Centre earlier and they too were agreeable on many suggestions."
The notice stated that the actor said in her tweet that the "same Dadi" who featured in Time Magazine was "available in 100 rupees".
Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait said that the government, in its letter, mentioned that it wants to hold talks over its earlier proposal of amendments in the new agri laws.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday said his government will bring a bill against the Centre's farm laws on the lines of Punjab.
The sixth round of talks between the government and farm union leaders, which was scheduled for Wednesday morning, has been cancelled. According to the union leaders, a new 'Delhi chalo' (march to Delhi)' call is being given to all farmers in the north India for December 14, while those in the South will be asked to protest at district headquarters.
The Bharatiya Kisan Union-led protest against the Centre's new farm laws in Ghaziabad looked like it was going slim on Thursday but more protesters have joined the stir, following a mahapanchayat of farmers on Saturday in Muzaffarnagar, while supporters also joined in from Haryana and Rajasthan districts.
'Nothing will stop India's top three-four corporates who have become aggressive players in the agri-markets after Modi came to power from acting in concert to drive down at will the prices at which they buy from farmers.' 'These corporate houses have the wherewithal to purchase all the farm produce at low prices and store them for a long period of time.' 'Once the harvest season is over they will sell the same produce at higher prices.'
'Our discussions with investors and the market's multiples suggest that Prime Minister Narendra Modi winning 2019 is being priced in,' says a UBS report.
'These three commodities have been chosen very well.' 'It is up to the state governments and central government to see how it is implemented.' 'The government has to do some hand-holding.'
Addressing a public meeting in Badhni Kalan in Punjab's Moga district, Gandhi asserted that the contentious Acts would be revoked if the Congress was voted to power.
Every young diploma and degree holder in the country will have the right to apprenticeships in the private and government sectors, he said.
Uttar Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party's working committee member Ram Iqbal Singh on Thursday said there would have been no agitation by farmers had the Centre consulted them before enacting the new agricultural laws.
The climate for 'doing business' remains forbidding, taxtortion is still rife, corruption at state and district levels has increased, oil prices remain extortive with high taxation, and the continued red tape has kept the enterprise system as stifled as before, points out Debashis Basu.
'Farmers have been sent notices in which the government is threatening that if you will join the movement, then we will impound your ancestral properties.' 'We will seal your bank accounts.' 'We will revoke the passports of your kids.'
Prices of broiler chicken had hit the record high in June on supply shortage following the government's decision to cull thousands of birds in the states with Avian Influenza outbreaks.
During the last few meetings, farmer leaders have been arranging their own lunch, snacks and beverages while refusing to have the food organised by the government.
Rajnath also attacked the Congress for the burning of a tractor by protesters from their youth wing.
In order to help farmers, the government has increased minimum support price for the last several years. This has made Indian rice uncompetitive for exports.
It said the money supply recovered to its pre-demonetisation level in mid-2017 and is now increasing steadily, similar to the previous trend.
The unions said the minimum support price (MSP) cannot be separated from the demand of repealing the contentious agriculture laws, asserting that the issue of a legal guarantee for the MSP is a key part of their agitation.
