INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
NEW DELHI: The Cabinet has allowed gradual entry of private companies in procurement of foodgrains and sanctioned 31,603 crore for two
schemes to ensure farmers are able to sell their produce at the minimum support price (MSP).
These initiatives are part of the Pradhan
Mantri Annadata Aay SanraksHan Abhiyan (PMAASHA) cleared by the Cabinet, which the government said was an unprecedented step taken to ensure
higher income of farmers with the help of robust procurement in coordination with states
The Cabinet also raised the price of ethanol for state oil firms by 25 per cent, to help sugarcane farmers.
“Cabinet has decided that
participation of private sector in procurement operation needs to piloted so that on the basis of learnings the ambit of private
participation in procurement operations may be increased,” the government said in a statement.
Pranav Adani, director - Adani Enterprises,
said that direct procurement by private sector should help in improving transparency in price discovery for farmers, stabilising and
augmenting farmers’ income by increasing competition for their produces and reducing inefficiency by curtailing role of the
middlemen.
“Once the farmer has better visibility on his income, agriculture will become attractive for entrepreneurs, thereby encouraging
investments in all facets of agriculture like cultivation, storage, logistics, etc
resulting in enhanced productivity.”
Adani said the success of the pilot scheme would depend on the mechanism to reimburse the difference
between the support price and the market price to private agencies
“This has been the shortcoming of such initiatives in the past
I believe it is a novel step to achieve our country’s vision to double farmers’ income by 2022,” he said.
The private players will be
given maximum service charges up to 15 per cent of the notified MSP.
Agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh said that for oilseeds, states
have the option to roll out private procurement stockist scheme (PPSS) on pilot basis in selected districts.
“The pilot district or
selected APMC(s) of district will cover one or more crop of oilseeds for which MSP is notified
The selected private agency shall procure the commodity at MSP at the notified markets during the notified period from registered farmers in
consonance with the PPSS guidelines, whenever the prices in the market falls below the notified MSP and whenever authorised by the state
government to enter the market,” said the government release.
The other existing schemes of Food ministry’s - procurement of paddy,
wheat and coarse grains and of Ministry of Textile’s for cotton and jute will be continued to provide MSP to farmers.
