Farm reforms: Now, a three-act tragedy

The Central government in June passed three Acts to reform the farm sector. One, to free the prices of cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oils, onion, and potatoes from stock limits (with some exceptions); two, allowing farmers to sell their crop to anyone, anywhere; and, three, allowing farmers to get into contract farming. The fairy tale outcome of these reforms would be better infrastructure and market access, which could take the rural economy to new heights. Under current laws, farmers can only sell (most products) to licensed traders in APMC (agricultural produce marketing committee) mandis near them, controlled by politicians, who