Ending APMC is anti-farmer: Cong
Abolishing the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) is anti-farmer and also encroaches on the Constitutional rights granted to state governments, said Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee President Mohan Markam on Monday.
In a statement issued to the media, he said the decision to end the stock limit under the Essential Commodities Act 1955 will open avenues for exploitation of not only the farmers but also the common man.
It will promote black marketing of paddy, wheat, oilseeds, potato, onion and other commodities, he said.
Markam said that few capitalists will procure the essential commodities in large quantities with the intention to earn profit. Supporting it, the Modi government in the last budget had permitted 100 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail sector.
The Congress leader said the system has failed across the globe due to which the 91 percent farmers in Europe and America have gone bankrupt.
In 2006, in Bihar, the Nitish Kumar government implemented it but failed as it did not benefit farmers. The farmers were unable to sell the paddy and wheat at more than Rs 1,200-1,300 per quintal. The same situation will be faced by farmers across the country.
