Congress stages statewide protest against Farmers Bills

The Congress staged statewide agitation against the three farmers Bills and exclusion of cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oil, onion and potato, sugar etc., from the list of essential commodities.
Congress stages statewide protest against Farmers Bills

Demands cancellation 3 farmers' Bills and rollback of decision on list of essential commodities

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Congress staged statewide agitation against the three farmers Bills and exclusion of cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oil, onion and potato, sugar etc., from the list of essential commodities.

The APCC (Assam Pradesh Congress Committee) staged the protest in as many as 272 blocks under the aegis of Block Congress Committees on Saturday. While APCC president Ripun Bora took part in the protest at Barpeta, CLP leader Debabrata Saikia took part in two blocks in Guwahati – Rupnagar and Manipuribasti.

Talking to The Sentinel, Saikia said, "The three farmers Bills brought by the BJP-led government at the Centre are anti-farmers. The three Bills have nothing that can protect farmers. However, the Bills have much to serve the interests of Capitalists. In the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha poll, the BJP did assure the farmers of giving them minimum support prices (MSP). However, the three recently-passed Bills haven't given any MSP. Now there's no possibility of giving MSP to farmers' produces.

"Apart from these three anti-farmer Bills, the government has taken an anti-people decision as well by excluding cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oil, onion and potato, sugar etc., from the list of essential commodities. The immediate fallout is that the prices of all such commodities have gone up. The State machinery had a say on the prices and stock of cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oil, onion and potato, sugar etc when they were under the list essential commodities. However, under the new system, the State machinery won't have much say on the control the prices of such items.

"We've staged the agitation at blocks in support of our demands for the cancellation of the three anti-farmers Bills and the decision taken on the list of essential commodities."

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