Haryana restricts entry of farmers from elsewhere; says other states not buying at MSP

Amid the row over the farm laws, Haryana Government on Monday has stopped the entry of farmers from other states to sell their produce in Haryana. Farmers from adjoining states were stopped on the border from entering the state to sell their produce in state government-run Mandis in Haryana. This seemingly comes as the Karnal District commissioner on Saturday had issued orders to prevent the outside farmers from entering the state to sell non-basmati varieties of rice which the Haryana government buys at MSP.

Although the laws do not restrict the farmers from selling in any state, the Haryana administration officials have reportedly said that the farmers need to upload their details on the government portal after which they get SMS about their arrival date at the market.

Haryana CM accuses Congress-ruled governments in other states

However, this is being seen as a move to give first preference to local farmers than outsiders. Even Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar while praising the new farm reforms laws had assured that the state government will buy Maize and Bajra of Haryana farmers adding that the government will not allow other states' farmers to benefit at the cost of their own farmers.

The Haryana chief minister had also accused the Congress-ruled states such as Rajasthan and Punjab of not procuring crops such as Bajra and Maize on MSP, compelling the farmers of their states to sell in Haryana.

He slammed the Congress for misleading the people and politicising the issue over the farm reform laws. He even questioned the Congress as to why they the states having their governments are not procuring the crops on MSP.

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Centre vs Opposition on Farm reform laws

The opposition including Congress is of the opinion that the new laws will lead to the abolishment of MSP mechanism and the liberalisation of the farm sector might affect the earlier Mandi system and leave the farmers at the mercy of the private entities. However, the government has reiterated that the MSP mechanism will not be impacted by the new reforms. The government has also reiterated that the APMC markets will continue to exist. The new laws will simply free the farmers from being compulsively dependent on the Mandis and middlemen which have been a long-standing issue due to corruption, which has led to less revenue for the farmers till now. The Central Government has claimed it as a move towards making farmers self-reliant.

The new laws will allow the farmers to sell their produce outside of the Mandis without having to share the commission with the middlemen which will lead to more income for the farmers. However, the farmers would still have the option to sell in Mandis if they wish to follow the conventional system, the Government has said on multiple occasions.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged the people to not fall for the misleading propaganda. The prime minister also hit out at the Opposition for its attack on the government over the farm bills issue by saying that those who always 'lied' to farmers are now 'shooting from their shoulders' and misleading them for their own political benefit. PM Modi has urged the BJP ground level worker to reach out to farmers and apprise them about how the new laws will empower them in the future.

READ | Delhi BJP Starts Campaign To Reach Out To Farmers, Dispel Misconceptions About Farm Reform Laws

READ | Ravi Shankar Prasad Says Agricultural Laws Will Help Farmers Become 'self-sufficient'