Janjivan Bureau / Panchkula : Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday defended the Centre’s three contentious farm laws but said his government is ready to talk to farmers if they feel there is any clause in the legislations against their interests.
Stressing that there is a need to fully understand the laws, Singh said an “atmosphere of opposition” is being created and farmers should understand this.
Farmers, mainly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been camping at Delhi’s borders since late November in protest against the laws, demanding their withdrawal.
Farmer groups have alleged that the laws will end the mandi and MSP procurement systems, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates.
Addressing the gathering for a state-level Annapurna programme under the Prime Minister Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana through online mode on Thursday, Singh lauded the Modi government for taking steps for the welfare of farmers.
“Our government brought three farm laws. But I think there is a need to fully understand these laws,” said Singh.
“Lekin ek virodh ka mahoul bhi paida kiya ja raha hai (But an atmosphere of opposition is being created). I feel that farmer brothers should understand this,” he said.
“Confusion” over the minimum support price was also spread, he asserted.
“Farmers have started realising the truth and they have started doing calculations of their profit and loss,” Rajnath claimed while pointing to benefits of the laws.
“I have studied the farm legislations fully and I can say with confidence that there is no clause, as per my information, which is against the interest of our farmer brothers,” he said.
“If anybody feels there is any such clause in these laws which can affect the interest of farmers, I want to say with full confidence that we are ready to sit and hold talks with the farmers,” the defence minister added.
Listing out the Modi government’s decisions taken for farmers’ welfare, he said the MSP had been raised by one-and-half times and small farmers had been provided with cheaper loans.
A sum of over Rs 1.5 lakh crore had been credited to the bank accounts of farmers, he said, adding that it had never happened in the history of the country.
“All these steps were taken to empower and strengthen our farmers,” he said.
