Parliamentary Panel Asks Centre To Implement 1 Of 3 Agri Laws, Farmers Trash Recommendation

The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020, one of the three agri laws against which the farmers have been protesting.

(File Photo/ Getty)

Alleging the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020, allows “unlimited private hoarding and black marketing”, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha on Saturday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government to withdraw the recommendation of a parliamentary panel to implement the said Act “in letter and spirit”.

The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020, one of the three agri laws against which the farmers have been protesting.

“It must not escape attention that the ECAA makes a wholly anti-poor recommendation that food, which is the most essential item for the survival of human beings, should be removed from the list of EC. It allows unlimited private hoarding and black marketing. It will lead to the winding up of the PDS facilities and structures,” the Samyukta Kisan Morcha in a statement.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha added the implementation of the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act will “expose 75 crore beneficiaries to open market purchase of food requirements, promoting Corporate and MNCs in food markets”, PTI reported.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha, which is an umbrella body of over 40 farmers’ union leading the farmers’ agitation, has called “Bharat Bandh” on March 26 during which they have decided to disrupt all services except emergency services from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and block all road and rail transport.

The farmers’ body has also decided to burn the copies of three agricultural laws in ‘Holika Dahan’ on March 28 besides taking a call to 'gherao' offices of the Food Corporation of India across the country from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on April 5.

What The House Panel Recommended:

The Standing Committee on Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, headed by Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay, in its report tabled in the Lok Sabha on Friday recommended the Centre to “implement the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020 in letter and spirit, and without let or hindrances so that the farmers and other stakeholders of farming sector in this country receive the benefits intended under the said Act”.

The panel having members from 13 parties, including the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Shiv Sena, TMC and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), said it “hope[s] and expect[s] that the recently enacted ‘The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020’ which was aimed at addressing the issue will become a catalyst for unlocking vast untapped resources in the agriculture sector by creating an environment for enhanced investments…, fair and productive competition in agricultural marketing and increase farmers’ income”.

This came even as the farmers have been protesting at Delhi borders over the last 100 days demanding the Centre to repeal the three farm laws.