-TheWire.in The Swaminathan Commission was clear in its recommendations, and the rationale offered by the NITI Aayog to rule out the use of comprehensive cost is dubious at best. Finance minister Arun Jaitley had announced in Budget 2018-19 that his “government has decided to keep MSP [minimum support price] for the all unannounced crops of kharif at least at one and half times of their production cost”. This announcement set off a flurry...
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Budget steps may not lift rural consumption soon -Ratna Bhushan & Sagar Malviya
-The Economic Times NEW DELHI | MUMBAI: The government's spending in the budget aimed at bolstering rural development and providing higher income for farmers has not increased significantly and it may take at least two quarters to drive growth in the hinterland, consumer goods companies said. More than a third of daily-use branded products are sold in the rural areas, home to about 800 million people, whose purchasing behaviour depends on farm...
More »With Latest MSP Promise, the False Narrative Surrounding Costs and Farmer Incomes Continues -Ramandeep Singh Mann
-TheWire.in The need of the hour is to set up a farmer pay commission, which can fix a minimum assured income of a farmer household. About halfway during the budget speech – while announcing the government’s plans for dealing with India’s agrarian crisis – finance minister Arun Jaitley made a rather bizarre statement. Apparently, according to Jaitley, the Modi government has already provided more than 50% margin over cost of production for...
More »Agriculture needs a cure more than quick fixes -T Sarita Reddy
-The Hindu Policy should address credit, crop insurance, drip irrigation The government’s efforts to focus on the welfare of farmers in the Union Budget is admirable. However, in a zero-sum situation such as budget allocation, the government often finds itself trying to choose between short-term results and long-term benefits. Short term results might come with loan waivers and increase of Minimum Support Price (MSP), but care should be taken to address the...
More »Why MSP at 1.5 Times Cost Is Another Empty Promise for Farmers -Kabir Agarwal
-TheWire.in Arun Jaitley’s Budget speech was vague on the details, and closer inspection reveals that it was also misleading. Arun Jaitley, presenting his fourth Budget as finance minister, announced that he is fulfilling a promise made by his party in the election manifesto for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections – the promise of a minimum support price (MSP) that is 50% higher than farmers’ cost of production. “Government has decided to keep...
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