Congress slams Centre over 'negligible' hike in paddy MSP

CHANDIGARH: Congress today slammed the Centre over "negligible" hike of Rs 50 per quintal in the minimum support price of paddy.

Congress Deputy Leader in the Lok Sabha, Amarinder Singh, demanded Rs 150 per quintal bonus on paddy to farmers and said that the Rs 50 per quintal hike on the MSP was not going to compensate the costs being incurred by the cultivators.

"With not so good monsoons predicted for this year, the farmers will have to employ their own irrigation (facilities) which will mean accruing extra costs," he said.

The senior Congress leader said the state government must announce Rs 150 per quintal bonus on paddy as he had done when he was the chief minister.

He said while the average cumulative increase in the paddy and wheat MSP during the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre was about Rs 70 per year, during the BJP-led NDA government between 1998 and 2004, it was only Rs 11.

He said the UPA government was generous towards farmers and had raised the MSP at times by as much as Rs 150 per quintal.

The UPA had increased the MSP of wheat by Rs 710 and paddy by Rs 750 in ten years. During the 6 years rule of NDA, the MSP of wheat was raised by just Rs 80 and paddy by Rs 70.

Meanwhile, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda today described the increase as "nominal" and said that he would appeal to the Central government to increase MSP on paddy by atleast Rs 300.

Punjab Congress President Partap Singh Bajwa also criticised the "negligible" Rs 50 hike in the paddy MSP.

"It is a cruel joke with the farmers. This hike is unacceptable and deserves to be rejected," Bajwa told reporters today.

The Centre yesterday announced Rs 50 per quintal increase in the minimum support price of paddy to Rs 1,360 to encourage farmers to cultivate rice.