Congress to propose amendment to APMC Act over MSP

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 24

The Congress will propose an amendment in the Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC) Act in the next Assembly session to make minimum support price (MSP) mandatory and ensure punishment for offenders.

This was decided in a Congress Legislature Party meeting chaired by Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Tuesday.

“The government refused to consider the proposal the last time, saying it was not given 15 days in advance, as mandated by rules,” said Hooda.

“This government will not give MSP to farmers without a law. Farmers are denied MSP in paddy and millet even today. Claims by the government on MSP in the purchase of maize, cotton, mustard and other crops have proven hollow,” he said.

“The government has no clear strategy on Covid. In such a situation, people need to be more careful at their level,” he said.

“The government has pushed farmers and workers into distress by imposing three farm laws and making changes in labour laws. In the coming days, these issues will be raised at every platform. The result of the Baroda byelection has shown that the public is disenchanted with this coalition government,” he said.

Extending support to farmers’ protests, Hooda condemned their arrests and termed these as unfortunate. He said the treatment meted out to farmers was wrong as all citizens had the right to raise their demand in a peaceful manner and agitate against policies that would harm them.

State Congress president Kumari Selja termed the arrests as dictatorship and demanded the release of arrested farmers.

“It is an attempt to suppress the voice of farmers against the three farm laws. The arrests by the scared government are condemnable,” she said.