YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) today urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reject recommendations of the Shanta Kumar Committee on Food Corporation of India (FCI), saying it would adversely affect the farmers.
"We understand that the Union Government is seriously considering accepting the recommendations of Shanta Kumar Committee report on restructuring of FCI.
"We respectfully submit that this will be a big blow to the farmers in many agrarian states like Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh and eventually for food security of India," party chief Jagan Mohan Reddy said in a letter to the PM.
"How can the Union Government trust state governments to perform the duty of FCI, which was procuring upto 75 per cent of the produce for the last 10 years.
"State governments have neither the financial resources nor the wherewithal to take over FCI operations from next year onwards," Jagan, a MLA from Pulivendla constituency in Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh, said.
On the Shanta Kumar Committee recommending a fertilizer subsidy of Rs 7,000 per hectare for farmers.
"States like AP are the largest per hectare consumer of NPK in India. The proposal to restrict it to Rs 7,000 per hectare will not cover the requirement of just one crop in states like ours," Jagan said.
"This means the farmers will have to buy fertilizers for the second crop at the market price which will hit them in an unprecedented manner, directly impacting their finances, which as they are, in doldrums," he added.
