Tribune News Service
Bathinda, September 11
The state government’s decision to reduce DAP fertilisers’ limit for cooperative societies from 80 per cent to 50 per cent (as per a notification issued recently) has not gone down well with Malwa farmers who have termed it a “ploy” by Centre to end cooperative societies in the state and hand over their control to private players.
Union leaders said the move would directly affect marginal farmers in the state. Not only would it become expensive to buy DAP at subsidised rates from societies, but it would also get tougher for them to procure fertiliser from private players, they said.
Earlier, 80 per cent of DAP fertiliser was sold to farmers by cooperative societies while 20 per cent was sold by private players. Through a recent notification, the state government has announced that fertiliser would now be sold at 50:50 ratio by cooperative societies and private players. Farmers have asked the government to revoke the notification or they would start a state-wide agitation soon.
Will Spell doom
The farming sector is already facing crisis and weakening or end of cooperative societies will spell doom for the marginal farmer. —Bhupinder Singh, Union president
Can’t exhaust stock
Farmers are already buying 50% of fertilisers from private players and since societies’ stocks can’t be exhausted, their share has been reduced. —Sukhdev Singh Sidhu, Agri dept director
BKU Sidhupur state president Jagjit Singh Dallewal told The Tribune: “Such decisions are nothing but pressure tactics of the Centre that wants to give reins of agriculture and related sectors to private players. It wants to end cooperative societies — a support system that has assisted marginal and medium scale farmers for years.” Owing to short supply of urea and DAP, farmers had to buy it at exorbitant rates from private players last year.
Sources in the Cooperative Department said wheat season was drawing closer and with new changes in place, the shortage of fertiliser was bound to create problems for farmers in the state.
BKU Ekta Ugrahan Mansa president Ram Singh Bhaini Bhagha said: “We condemn the government decision. Cooperative societies do handholding of farmers by providing them fertilisers and other material at lower interest rates. The 50:50 ratio will encourage hoarding and create shortage, thus leading to a rise in cost of fertilisers in the market.” Moreover, cooperative societies sell fertilisers other material on credit. “We urge the government to strengthen cooperative societies, instead of promoting privitisation,” he said.
Sukhdev Singh Sidhu, Director, Agriculture Department, said: “The decision was taken as farmers have been buying 50 per cent of fertilisers from private players already and since stocks available with cooperative societies couldn’t be exhausted completely, its share has been reduced to 50 per cent. Farmers know very well that if rates are same, the question of loot does not arise.”
DAP limit cut for coop societies irks unions
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