BJP led NDA Government in its first cabinet meeting and within 24 hours of taking oath, sent messages to all the countrymen that gave such a huge mandate to it including clear signals to the habitual critics, about the extent of concern it had for the farming community by taking the first Cabinet decision of extending the existing income support scheme of Rs.6000 per annum, now to all the farmers numbering over 14.5 crore. Not only that, the scheme was shaped with homogeneous coverage by removing the two hectares land ceiling which was the benchmark for reckoning eligibility under the scheme. That, besides exhibiting the Government’s commitment to focus on bettering the lot of farmers, Modi Government was equally concerned about other marginal sections of the society like small traders, self employed persons, petty agriculturists etc became further clear by announcing a pension scheme for them.These groups were , thus , slated to get a minimum pension of Rs.3000 per month after attaining the age of 60.
Since the nation owed much to the families of the martyrs of our security forces, the new Government has taken a decision in favour of the widows and wards of the deceased or ex- service personnel of armed forces and para- military forces by granting a hike in the amount of scholarships signalling not only that the nation was concerned about their welfare but it was a token of remembering and valuing their invaluable contribution to the nation. Definitely, these two key decisions taken in the first cabinet meeting, carried a lot of importance in purpose and content as they were among the key promises made in the election manifesto of the BJP .
Was the farm distress reduced to a mere tool of cornering the Modi Government as if the distress was only as much old as that Government, less said the better. However, even the unrelenting critics would not agree that agrarian distress was born only from the year 2014, not only on technical cum factual grounds but because of various steps taken by the NDA- 1 to mitigate the intensity in the then existing structure inherited from the UPA Government , like extended crop insurance, hike in MSP, free availability of urea and other fertilizers, soil health cards, hassles free credit facilities, concessions in rate of interest on monies lent, loan waiver schemes. The list is lengthy.
That earmarking of Rs. 87000 crore every year for the cause of farmers means a lot under given circumstances as the PM- Kisan scheme was not a one-time affair but the same had to be implemented on perpetual basis which also means that economic footing and the variables were stable and could sustain the burden without disturbing normal developmental activities. It cannot, however, be firmly held that these measures could adequately address agricultural woes in this vast country where natural factors like irregular, excessive and scant rains played havoc, where disguised employment in farming activities existed, where soil was showing fatigue , where per capita land holdings were on decline , where glut or overabundance and shortage in produce played havoc with equal intensity as we saw last year with onions and potatoes where input costs including at random cost of labour were many times more than the price of these items in wholesale markets. The fact of the matter is that an assured payment of Rs.6000 per annum would address the problem of liquidity faced by marginal and small farmers since it is only from harvest to harvest that most of the farmers “see” cash payments of their produce which have many immediate receivers like farmers’ creditors , family needs, pressing commitments etc , thus making the marginal farming community starve for petty liquidity. It is likely that the amount could be revised upwards within a year or two. There are, however, other sustaining measures to be employed to reverse the causes of farm distress and Modi Government was expected to take a serious call.
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