Know All About Committee Members Set Up By SC To Resolve Agri Laws Impasse

Here’s all you need to know about the members of the committee formed by the Supreme Court to end the deadlock between the farm unions and the government.

Protesting farmers burn copies of recent agricultural reforms bill while celebrating Lohri festival, as they continue to protest along a blocked highway against the central government, at the Gazipur Delhi-Uttar Pradesh state border, in Ghaziabad on January 13, 2021. (Photo by Prakash SINGH / AFP)

As the rift between the protesting farmers and the Union Government is intensifying day-by-day over the contentious farm laws, in order to end the deadlock, the Supreme Court on Tuesday recommended a four-member committee to resolve the matter. So far, the farmer unions have refused to negotiate with the committee stating that the recommended members by the apex court already have their slant towards the newly enacted laws. The committee recommended by Supreme Court includes Bhupinder Singh Mann, President of Bhartiya Kisan Union; Anil Ghanwat, President of Shetkari Sangthana, Maharashtra; Pramod Kumar Joshi, Director for South Asia International Food Policy Research Institute, and agriculture economist Ashok Gulati. At the time when this report is filed, Bhupinder Singh Mann recused himself from the panel. Mann said he is thankful to the court for nominating him on the committee but would sacrifice any position offered to him so as not to compromise the interests of farmers. Let us get to know more about the members recommended by the top court for the resolution. Bhupinder Singh Mann: Mann, a farm leader known for his exceptional contribution to the farmers' struggle, was appointed to Rajya Sabha by the Honorable President of India in 1990. During his tenure in the upper house, Mann raised 118 unstarred questions which for the first time led the then PM to accept in Rajya Sabha, that Indian Farmers are victims of Negative Support amounting to 72 per cent of the value of agriculture produce. In 2017 April he organized a National Level meeting of KCC at Chandigarh. From here he launched a unique Andolan “Jo vada kia vo nibhana padega” to force Modi Government to fulfill his poll promise of implementing the Swaminathan Report. This Andolan was spread throughout the nation by the KCC. This Andolan has spread like a wildfire across the nation and has pushed the Modi Government to the corner. Currently, he is the National President of BKU and Chairman of the All-India Kisan Coordination Committee. Anil Ghanwat: Ghanwat is the president of the Shetkari Sanghatana, the Maharashtra-based farmers’ union founded by the legendary Sharad Joshi, who has been vocal about getting access to the market. An agriculture graduate, Ghanwat has been associated with the Sanghatana since the 1990s, has been a strong supporter of liberalization and open-market policies in agriculture. Pramod Kumar Joshi: Joshi is a leading name in the field of agriculture research. He has served as the director of the National Academy of Agricultural Research Management, Hyderabad, and the director of the National Centre for Agricultural Economics and Policy Research, New Delhi. Dr Joshi was previously the South Asia Coordinator at the International Food Policy Research Institute and senior economist at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics in Patancheru. Ashok Gulati: Gulati, agricultural economist and a former chairman of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), the advisory body of the Government of India on food supplies and pricing policies. Currently, Gulati serves as the chair professor for Agriculture at Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), and member of Task Force on Agriculture under the NITI Aayog and chairman of the Expert Group on Agriculture Market Reforms. Gulati received his Padma Shree award in 2015 for his contribution in his field and also served as the youngest member of the Economic Advisory Committee during the NDA 1 of Atal Vihari Bajpayee.