Farmers' protest: Congress had dismissed Swaminathan Report in 2010, here's why
hundreds of farmers were tear-gassed at the Delhi borders to restrict them from entering the national capital. Farmer unions have huddled at Delhi borders to pressure the government in accepting their demand of a law that guarantees MSP for all crops and the determination of crop prices as per the Swaminathan Commission’s report.
While one could say that the Congress has sought to seize the chance to reverse their fortunes in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in 2024 but in 2010, when the UPA bloc was ruling, the Congress had dismissed the Swaminathan Report, saying it could "distort the market." BJP's Prakash Javadekar, in a question to the Ministry of Agriculture, had demanded to know “if the government had accepted the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission regarding calculation of remunerative prices to be paid to the farmers". In its reply, the then Ministry of Agriculture had stated that “the National Commission of Farmers under the Chairmanship of Prof.
MS Swaminathan had recommended that the Minimum Support Price (MSP) should be at least 50 per cent more than the weighted average cost of production". "This recommendation, however, has not been accepted by the Government because MSP is recommended by the Commission for Agriculture Costs and Prices (CACP) based on objective criteria and considering variety of relevant factors.
Hence, prescribing an increase if a at least 50 per cent on cost may distort the market. A mechanical linkage between MSP and cost of production may be counter-productive in some cases," the response added.Milestone Alert!
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