Middlemen, not ryots, are protesting in Delhi: Shobha

Mysuru: Union minister of state for agriculture and farmers welfare, Shobha Karandlaje, said that those who are protesting in Delhi against the acts relating to agriculture are not farmers, “but farm brokers and middlemen”.
Speaking after Janasheervada Yatre programme held here to create awareness about the central government’s schemes, she said: “Middlemen who were part of Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) in Punjab and Haryana are protesting as they used to fleece farmers for a good commission.”
She also said that protests in Karnataka against these acts are also politically motivated. “The new laws will support farmers to trade their produce out of the APMC ambit. This will help farmers get better prices for their produce,” she claimed.
Farmer’s protest
Angered by the minister’s statement, farmers, led by their leader Kurubur Shanthakumar, staged a protest and also gheraoed her during the launch of the yatre. “How dare she calls farmers as brokers and middlemen? During his speeches in 2014, Prime Minister Modi had promised to introduce the Swaminathan Commission report. But the report is yet to be implemented. Modi had promised to double the income of farmers. But what has increased is the price of fertilizers and seeds, doubling the expenditure on farming activity,” Shanthakumar said.
He also alleged that Shobha, by sowing paddy seedlings in Mandya, tried to get cheap publicity. “As a minister, it is not her job. She should bring welfare programmes to save farmers. For the past two years, farmers have not got the compensation money for the crop loss. The central government is yet to finalise the Fair & Remunerative Price (FRP) for sugarcane,” he said.m