24 september 2024 : Days after announcing his plan to meet with farmers weekly, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan held his first discussion with a delegation of 50 farmers and farm union leaders in New Delhi on Tuesday.
During the meeting, the delegation raised several concerns, including the prices of their crops, issues related to the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (crop insurance scheme), losses caused by stray animals, and government policies during the harvest season.
The meeting took place at the Pusa complex and included farmers and leaders from Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Delhi, along with senior officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.
After the meeting, Chouhan addressed reporters, stating, “I have said before that agriculture is the backbone of the Indian economy, and farmers are its soul. Serving farmers is like worshipping God for us.”
He reiterated his commitment to holding weekly meetings, saying, “Previously, while discussing the achievements of the last 100 days, I announced that I would meet with farmers and farmer organizations every Tuesday. Often, we don’t fully grasp the challenges they face while sitting in our offices. It is our responsibility to engage directly with those experiencing these issues, discuss them, and find solutions.”
Chouhan noted that he had spoken to various farmers’ organizations and received numerous suggestions, including those concerning crop pricing, the crop insurance scheme, and losses due to stray animals. He mentioned that discussions were held in a positive atmosphere, and he and his team of officials would work on addressing the issues raised.
He highlighted that farmers appreciated several decisions made by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government, such as increasing the import duty on palm oil to 27.5%, removing the minimum export price on Basmati rice, reducing the export duty on onions from 40% to 20%, and the procurement of tur (arhar), urad, and masoor from farmers.
Chouhan concluded, “The dialogue we have initiated has been well received, and we will continue these discussions with farmers to address their concerns.” His outreach initiative comes at a time when farmers from Punjab and Haryana have been protesting against the Centre over three controversial farm laws, which were eventually repealed. Some farmers have remained in protest at the Haryana-Punjab border for several months.
