Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday criticised some individuals from Maharashtra for engaging in only politics under the guise of advocating for farmers.
His comments were aimed at the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) supremo Sharad Pawar, who previously held the Agriculture portfolio in the UPA government (2004 to 2014).
Mr. Modi said that his government was committed to the empowerment of farmers and highlighted the transfer of Minimum Support Price (MSP) money for their produce directly into farmers’ bank accounts.
Speaking at an event in the temple town of Shirdi in Ahmednagar district after inaugurating and laying the foundation stone for various development projects worth about ₹7,500 crore, Mr. Modi said: “Some people in Maharashtra only did politics in the name of farmers. A senior leader of Maharashtra served as the country’s Agriculture Minister. I personally respect him, but what has he done for farmers?” He did not mention Mr. Pawar by name.
During Mr. Pawar’s tenure as Union Agriculture Minister, he said that farmers had to rely on intermediaries, resulting in lengthy delays in receiving their payments. “For months, farmers had to await their payments. Our government gave MSP money directly into the bank accounts of farmers,” Mr. Modi said.
The Prime Minister said that in the seven years foodgrains worth ₹13.5 lakh crore was procured under MSP while this figure was a mere ₹3.5 lakh crore during the tenure of a senior leader in the earlier government. Oilseed and pulses worth ₹1,15,000 crore were procured after 2014, compared to ₹500-600 crore worth MSP procurement earlier. The direct benefit transfer had removed corruption and leakage, he said.
The development projects inaugurated by Mr. Modi include an Ayush hospital at the Ahmednagar Civil Hospital; electrification of Kurduwadi-Latur Road railway section (186 km); 3rd and 4th railway lines connecting Jalgaon to Bhusaval (24.46 km); four-laning of Sangli to Borgaon section of NH-166 (Package-I); and additional facilities at the Manmad terminal of the Indian Oil Corporation Limited. He also laid the foundation stone for the maternal and child health wing at the Ahmednagar Civil Hospital and distributed Ayushman cards and Svamitva cards to beneficiaries.
The Nilwande Dam, which had been pending for five decades (conceived in 1970), is being developed at a cost of ₹5,177 crore and Mr. Modi performed ‘Jal Pujan’ at the site. “The project came to completion only after the present government came to power. Those doing vote politics in the name of farmers have made you yearn for every drop of water”, he said, adding that the right bank canal would soon be operational.
The Prime Minister mentioned PM Kisan Samman Nidhi under which small farmers received ₹2,60,000 crore, including ₹26,000 crore for the small farmers of Maharashtra. He said that under the Maharashtra government’s ‘Namo Shetkari Mahasanman Nidhi Yojana’, farmers would get an extra ₹6,000, meaning local small farmers would get ₹12,000 of Samman Nidhi.
Mr. Modi cited the recent Cabinet decisions to increase the MSP for rabi crops, and said the MSP of gram had been increased by ₹105 and that of wheat and safflower by ₹150. He said the MSP of sugarcane had been increased to ₹315 per quintal.
Ethanol purchase
In the last nine years, the Prime Minister said, ethanol worth about ₹70,000 crore had been purchased and the money had reached the sugarcane farmers. “To ensure timely payment to sugarcane farmers, assistance worth thousands of crores of rupees has been provided to sugar mills and cooperative societies”, Mr. Modi said, adding that his government was working to strengthen the cooperative movement and more than two lakh cooperative societies were formed across the country.
Stating that Maharashtra had been a centre of immense potential and possibilities, Mr. Modi said that the faster Maharashtra developed, the faster India would develop.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Modi, along with Governor Ramesh Bais, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, and Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar performed pooja and darshan at Shri Saibaba temple.
Speaking about the darshan queue complex at the Saibaba temple, the Prime Minister recalled the laying of its foundation stone in October 2018 and said it would further increase the convenience for pilgrims from India and abroad.
Uddhav’s demand
Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray demanded that Mr. Modi meet pro-Maratha quota activist Majon Jarange Patil and address the reservation issue for the Maratha community in jobs and education.
“I welcome the Prime Minister, but he should meet Mr. Patil and resolve the issue of granting reservation to the Maratha community,” Mr. Thackeray said.
