If sunflower seeds had a legally guaranteed MSP, the country could kill two birds with one stone: it could accelerate crop diversification and self-reliance for the third-largest consuming edible oil
Published Date – Mon 6/26/23 12:30am
Author: Arun Sinha
Recently, Haryana farmers asked the state government to procure sunflower seeds at the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 6,400 per quintal set by the central government, but this was just a glowing spark in the unquenched flames of the farmers. Protests in 2020-21.
For more than a year, thousands of farmers have camped through winter, summer and rainy days on Delhi’s border with Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, after the central government promised to set up a committee to review their claims. , and they went home. All 23 crops (7 cereals, 5 pulses, 7 oilseeds, 4 cash crops) for which the central government sets floor prices annually are subject to legally guaranteed minimum support prices.
The central government has repealed three farm laws at the request of farmers and believes their protests will end. But the farmers have come home saying they will not be satisfied unless the government accepts their demands for legally guaranteed MSPs; if not, they will continue to agitate.
angry farmer
Farmers in Haryana recently blocked the Chandigarh-Delhi National Highway, marking the return of angry farmers to the cities. Although the central government has set a minimum price of sunflower seeds at Rs 6,400 per quintal, none of the three parties that buy agricultural products – the central government, state governments and private traders – buy the produce at this price.
The central government does not purchase sunflower seeds. Private traders bought it for Rs 3,600 to Rs 4,200. State governments that used to buy them in previous years have now stopped. It didn’t start buying until farmers protested.
However, it paid Rs 4,800 per quintal and an additional Rs 1,000 per quintal as compensation for the difference between the MSP and the average market price. The total of Rs 5,800 is still Rs 600 less than the MSP. The farmers wanted the minimum support price of Rs 6,400 and blocked the roads. Eventually, when the state government announced the procurement at Rs 5,000 per quintal, they agreed to stop the commotion, thus bringing the actual price to Rs 6,000.
You can see that no one wants to pay MSP to sunflower growers. The reason is simple: MSPs have no spine. It has no legal sanction. The buyer is under no obligation to pay the farmer a minimum amount. The Committee on Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare determines MSPs for 23 crops annually, but the MSPs are nominal. If it’s legal, farmers get it. If farmers knew they could get MSP, they would be encouraged to grow the most profitable crops and grow larger and larger acreage.
Repair MSP
The CACP identified the MSP’s overarching objective as “incentivizing producers to adopt improved technologies and broadly develop production models in line with state requirements.” The question to be asked here is: Will the Haryana government’s refusal to pay the MSP disincentivize sunflower growers? Wouldn’t that stop them from growing sunflowers? Won’t this slow down the pace of crop diversification? Crop diversification is a national priority.
The central government is working with the governments of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh to change the cultivation patterns in these green revolution states. These countries have grown enough rice and wheat to feed entire countries, but at a high price: groundwater levels have dropped to very low levels. Rice and wheat, especially rice, are water-intensive crops. If they continue the rice-wheat cycle, they may not be able to find water to grow anything on the land in a few decades.
Regrettably, the Haryana government is not working in line with national priorities. Sunflower is one of the ideal crops for crop diversification. They are versatile. They can grow in any soil and climate. They can be adapted to various planting patterns. They are much more profitable than rice and wheat.
The Haryana government’s approach is actually very strange. The government announced a policy in July 2018 to source the state’s “whole batch of sunflower seeds” at MSP each year. It has pledged to build oil mills in the state to process “every sunflower seed” it buys. In 2017, the state government procured 20 percent of the total sunflower seed production. In 2018, it purchased 50%, and in 2019, it purchased 100%.
dig a hole
With the government’s announcement, the state’s sunflower area will increase from 9,440 hectares in 2018-19 to 12,290 hectares in 2020-21, 13,020 hectares in 2021-22 and 14,160 hectares in 2022-23. This has mainly occurred in the Kurukshetra, Ambala and Kanal districts of northern Haryana, which are the worst affected by groundwater depletion. Crop diversification appears to be on track. But the Haryana government, which was supposed to hasten the process, dug a hole in the road.
The logic of the government of Haryana to stop the procurement of sunflower seeds is strange. If the sunflower seeds are sourced at MSP, the sunflower seeds from Punjab will flood the agricultural markets of Haryana, the company said. Will the cause of national crop diversification be abandoned for fear of smuggling produce from neighboring countries? If you look, the solution to even this weird problem lies in a legally secured MSP. If farmers in all states received the same price, there would be no smuggling into other states.
By increasing sunflower area and production, India can reduce sunflower oil imports. Currently, the country consumes about 2.4 million tons of sunflower oil, 60 percent of which comes from Ukraine, Russia and Argentina. Sunflower oil is most commonly used in households in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and other parts of South India. If there were a legally guaranteed minimum support price for sunflower seeds, the state could kill two birds with one stone: it could speed up crop diversification and the self-reliance of the third-largest consumer edible oil.
