Advance oilseed procurement: BKU urges govt

The Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni) has requested the government to advance the procurement of oilseeds to protect farmers from selling produce below the MSP.

In a letter to the Chief Minister, BKU (Charuni) chief Gurnam Singh said oilseed crops, including mustard and toria, had matured and arrivals had also started at various grain markets.

The MSP for oilseeds is Rs 5,950 a quintal and the government had promised to procure the crops at MSP. Agencies will enter the market on March 30 to begin procurement but a majority of produce will be sold to middlemen and private players below MSP, and the same people will later resell the produce to government on MSP. The delay in procurement will only benefit private players, the union claimed.

The union requested the government to start the procurement of oilseeds immediately, so that the farmers sold their produce at MSP. If the farmers were forced to sell produce below MSP, the union would be forced to take action and the government would be responsible for the consequences, it warned.