Parl panel suggests doubling PM Kisan Nidhi, commission for farm labourers

It also recommends implementing a robust and legally binding MSP in the country

Amid protest by a section of farmers in Haryana demanding legalisation of MSP, a parliamentary panel has recommended implementing a robust and legally-binding MSP in the country, which “could play a crucial role in reducing farmers’ suicides in India by providing financial stability, protecting against market volatility and alleviating debt burdens”.

 

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Food Processing, headed by Congress Lok Sabha member Charanjit Singh Channi, in its report on Demands for Grants (2024-25), tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, also recommended that the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare should be renamed to acknowledge the role of farm labourers. It also asked the Centre to double the annual PM-Kisan Nidhi scheme entitlement from Rs 6,000 to Rs 12,000.

   

It said that seasonal incentives given to farmers should also be extended to tenant farmers and farm labourers.

 

The panel’s recommendation came even as protesting farmers in Shambhu and Khanauri borders between Haryana and Punjab rejected a fresh offer for talks with the state government and demanded that they will only have a dialogue with the Centre. They have attempted to break the barriers multiple times in the last few days in an attempt to reach Delhi.

 

The farmers, who have been blocking the borders since February 2024, said that between 2014 and 2024, wheat MSP has risen by 56 per cent, while inflation during the same period has risen by 56.53 per cent.

 

“This means that inflation rose at a faster rate in the last 10 years than the rise in MSP of wheat for farmers,” an official statement by the protesting farmers said.

 

Meanwhile, the parliamentary panel also recommended a change in the nomenclature to Department of Agriculture, Farmers and Farm Labourers Welfare, to impart a broader focus on not only farmers, but also the welfare of agricultural labourers.

 

The committee recommended that the department should explore the possibility of providing compulsory Universal Crop Insurance to small farmers with land holding of up to two hectares on the lines of the Centre’s Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) health insurance scheme.

 

The committee “strongly” recommended that a National Commission for Minimum Living Wages for Farm Labourers should be established at the earliest to provide long due rights to farm labourers.

 

In the context of increasing farmers’ suicides linked to farm distress because of rising farm debt, the committee asked the Centre to introduce a scheme to waive off debt of farmers and farm labourers.

 

The committee observed that though the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare received higher allocations in absolute amount from 2021-22 to 2024-25 compared to other departments, the percentage share of the department with regard to the total central plan outlay declined from 3.53 per cent in 2020-21 to 2.54 per cent in 2024-25. It urged the government to enhance allocation to agriculture, especially to improve productivity.

 

The committee noted that Rs 10.41 crore was allocated in BE 2023-24 under ‘Capital Outlay on other General Economic Services, which was reduced to Rs 9.96 crore in RE 2023-24. Out of this allocation, only Rs 3.389 crore was utilised during the year 2023-24. The committee, while noting the reasons for the delay in taking up the required works resulting in surrender of more than 60 per cent of the funds allocated at RE stage, suggested that proper planning may be put in place to use funds meant for capital works.   

On the table 

- Implement a legally binding minimum support price (MSP) for agricultural produce

- Provide compensation to farmers for managing crop residue

- Set up a National Commission for Minimum Living Wages for Farm Labourers

- A debt waiver scheme for farmers and farm labourers

- Rename the agriculture dept to include farm labourers