PATNA:
Bihar's ruling JD(U), an ally of BJP, on Wednesday hailed the union cabinet's decision to increase the minimum support price (MSP) of most of the kharif crops but at the same time asked the Centre to ensure some "stringent arrangements" to procure agricultural produces from the farmers at the rate of increased MSP.
"The decision to increase the MSP will not only bring happiness among the disappointed farmers but also cause a possibility of increase in production. We hail increase in the MSP of most of the Kharif crops," JD(U) national secretary general KC Tyagi said.
He said, though the increases in the MSP were in line with the budget announcement by finance minister
Arun Jaitley, who while presenting the budget for 2018-19 had said that that the government would fix MSP for all crops at least one-and-a-half times their production cost; the farmer bodies' main demand to finalise process for fixation of input cost, has not been fulfilled so far.
Tyagi said the farmers of different states had been agitating due to fall in the prices of agricultural products and non-procurement of grains on the fixed MSP. "Now, we urge the Centre to make some stringent arrangements to procure the farmers' produces at the rate of increased MSP," he said.