(The Editor's Pick is a new newsletter from The Hindu that provides a snapshot of the most important stories from today's edition of our newspaper, along with a note from our top editors on why we chose to give prominence to these stories.)
Food Processing Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal has resigned from the Union Cabinet in protest over two Agriculture Bills which were passed by Lok Sabha. She was the only representative of NDA ally Shiromani Akali Dal in the Cabinet. Farmers in SAD base Punjab and neighbouring Haryana are up in arms against the two Agricultural Bills — 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. The Produce Trade and Commerce Bill opens up agricultural trade outside the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) mandis in the States. It also frees up inter-State trade in produce and boosts electronic trade, while preventing States from taxing trade outside the APMCs. The Empowerment and Protection Bill is the framework for contract farming in the country. Both these Bills open up the agriculture sector more to the open market. Critics of the Produce Trade and Commerce Bill see it as an attempt to dismantle the Minimum Support Price regime, though the government insists that MSP will always be available as an option to farmers. Some fear contract farming will leave small farmers at the mercy of corporates. The protests against these Bills have now resulted in an ally of the government reviewing ties. This political fallout, and the concerns of the crucial agricultural sector, are what make this story important. |
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