He added farmers will continue to get MSP. He was brefing the media on Sunday
Parliament passed the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill 2020 and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill 2020 with Rajya Sabha approving it on Sunday amid uproar by the opposition. The House also negated the oppositions’ amendments to send the Bills to the Select Committee. Speaking on the Bills, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar said that the government has taken several steps for doubling the income of farmers after consultations with the famers and States.
The two Bills aim at increasing the availability of buyers for farmers’ produce by allowing them to trade freely without any license or stock limit resulting in better prices for their produce. They will replace two ordinances promulgated by the Central Government in June this year.
The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill allows intra-state and inter-state trade of farmers’ produce beyond the physical premises of APMC markets. As per the Bill, State governments are prohibited from levying any market fee, cess or levy outside APMC areas.
The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill creates a framework for contract farming through an agreement between a farmer and a buyer prior to the production of any farm produce.