Union Budget 2024: The Congress party has strongly criticised the Union Budget, claiming that it offers little support to farmers despite a challenging year for the agricultural sector. Senior Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh, Mallikarjun Kharge, and Rahul Gandhi have expressed their discontent over the budget's provisions, or lack thereof, for the farming community.
MP Jairam Ramesh, in a post on X, stated, "India’s farmers have received a raw deal in the Union Budget. The Agriculture and Allied Budget – which affects a majority of the country’s population – is only 3.15% of the total Budget, down from 5.44% in 2019-2020. This is after a year of bad monsoons dragged down agricultural growth from 4.7% in 2022-23 to 1.4% in 2023-24, necessitating greater government support for the sector. In her speech, the Finance Minister boasted of the increase in MSP for crops earlier this year – but the prices are still significantly below what the Swaminathan Commission Formula recommended. The demand for legal status for MSP has been met with stony silence – as has the demand for a farm loan waiver."
Rajya Sabha LoP and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge voiced his disappointment, stating, "This budget is very disappointing. It has been crafted to save their throne. What we were expecting for the farmers – MSP guarantee, strengthening MSP legally, and subsidies for fertilisers and other pesticides – none of these expectations have been met."
"So many accidents are happening in the railways, and the railways are in a dire state – ever since the finance department took over, it either hasn't received adequate funds or proper recruitments have not been made," he added citing recent rail accidents.
Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, described the budget as a "kursi bachao budget" that prioritises the interests of BJP allies over those of other states. He criticised the budget as a "copy and paste job" from the Congress manifesto for the 2024 polls and previous budgets. In his post on X, Gandhi said, "'Kursi Bachao' Budget. Appease Allies: Hollow promises to them at the cost of other states. Appease Cronies: Benefits to AA with no relief for the common Indian. Copy and Paste: Congress manifesto and previous budgets."
Union Budget 2024: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Announces Rs 1.52 Lakh Crore Allocation For Agriculture, Allied Sectors
Meanwhile, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a Rs 1.52 lakh crore allocation for agriculture and allied sectors for 2024-25, with a focus on research, sustainability, and technology integration. In her budget speech, Sitharaman highlighted the need for a thorough review of the agriculture research setup to enhance productivity and develop climate-resilient crop varieties. "Our government will undertake a comprehensive review of the agriculture research setup to bring the focus on raising productivity and developing climate resilient varieties," she said, as quoted by news agency PTI.
The minister also announced that farmers would soon have access to 109 new high-yielding, climate-resilient varieties across 32 field and horticulture crops. To boost self-sufficiency in crucial crops, she revealed plans for focused missions on pulses and oilseeds, aimed at strengthening their production, storage, and marketing infrastructure. "As announced in the interim budget, a strategy is being put in place to achieve 'atmanirbharta' for oil seeds, such as mustard, groundnut, sesame, soybean, and sunflower," Sitharaman said.
Additionally, the government aims to bring 1 crore farmers into natural farming over the next two years, supported by certification and branding efforts. Sitharaman outlined plans to implement Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in agriculture, which will include digital crop surveys and the creation of farmer and land registries within three years.