*The committee is preparing to find a middle ground, not a legal guarantee of MSP; members exert pressure*
Several members of the MSP Committee, formed by the central government, have advocated for a system in which farmers receive the Minimum Support Price (MSP) both inside and outside the market. Currently, government and cooperative procurement agencies purchase crops at MSP in the market if the quality of the crop meets the prescribed standards, but this system is not applicable outside the market, i.e., for the private sector. Instead of a system such as a legal guarantee of MSP, the committee members are trying to find a middle ground so that their image among farmers is not tarnished. This was revealed at the committee meeting held in New Delhi on Wednesday.
*All meetings have been inconclusive so far*
Since the committee's formation on July 22, 2022, seven meetings have been held. Additionally, 35 sub-committees of the committee have met, but its members have not yet reached any conclusions. This is the first meeting of the committee since the formation of the new central government in 2024. The next meeting will be held in March.
The committee's members, appointed by farmers' organizations, want to prepare a report and submit it to the government as soon as possible, as the committee has been formed for a long time. Meanwhile, the Kisan Jagriti Yatra of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) is underway, demanding a legal guarantee for MSP.
*Increased Pressure on MSP*
However, the committee's meeting, held after a long time, was chaotic because most of the bureaucrats involved did not want the MSP system to be implemented outside the market. In fact, the officials do not have to go among the farmers to answer, but the farmer leaders have to go among the farmers and the public.
Therefore, they do not want to do anything that would lead to criticism from farmers or the general public. Therefore, they are very cautious on the issue of MSP, as it is a very sensitive issue for farmers. Natural farming and crop diversification were also discussed throughout the day-long meeting, but the issue of MSP dominated.
The five committee members who had recently pressured the chairman to declare a reserve price for crops remained firm on this issue. They stated that the MSP, which the government itself determines, should be available to farmers both inside and outside the market. It remains to be seen whether the committee chairman will agree with the members or take a different stance.
*When and why was the committee formed?*
The announcement of the MSP committee regarding MSP was made on November 19, 2021, alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's repeal of three controversial agricultural laws. However, the protesters sitting on the Delhi border wanted something in writing. Subsequently, on December 9, 2021, the then Agriculture Secretary, Sanjay Agarwal, issued a letter to farmer organizations, after which the protesting farmers returned to their homes from the Delhi border.
Nearly eight months after this announcement, the notification for the formation of the committee came on July 12, 2022. However, the government appointed the same Sanjay Agarwal as the chairman of this committee, during whose tenure as Union Agriculture Secretary, three agricultural laws were introduced and a 13-month-long farmers' movement was carried out.
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