Former Prime Minister Deve Gowda Monday said the Centre’s announcement for the agriculture sector in the Budget have let down people, saying the “reduced” allocation for Minimum Support Price (MSP) will “adversely impact” food production and income of farmers.
Speaking in Rajya Sabha, Deve Gowda said he does not take sides, but the government’s allocation for the agriculture sector has “disappointed” all those who were expecting an increased outlay. The outlay has come down to 3.84 per cent against 3.92 per cent for 2021-22, he said.
He also said that the Budget did not have any roadmap to offer on the government’s plan to double the income of farmers by 2022.
“Instead of increasing subsidies for food and petroleum products, subsidies have been decreased which will impact the cost of cultivation and decrease the profit margin of farmers. The budget allocated for MSP has been reduced instead of increasing…This will adversely impact food production as well as income of farmers,” Deve Gowda said. He said the proposal to use drones for spraying chemicals was “totally inappropriate” in the Indian context since over 88 per cent farmers fall in the small and marginal category.
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