Bangalore: Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy has said that the Government is contemplating a new market intervention policy since there are serious doubts about whether the present system is beneficial to farmers.

He cited the minimum support price announced recently by the Government for various grades of onion after prices slumped. While the Government spent around. Rs. 85 crore to purchase onion, what had been procured so far would fetch the Government about Rs. 8.50 crore. Reports indicated that 31,680 onion growers benefited from the purchase scheme. However onion prices were still way below the support price announced, he said.

The Chief Minister on Tuesday chaired a high-level meeting of Ministers of the departments concerned and senior officials on the support price mechanism in the light of the fall in prices of several agricultural commodities, including horticultural produce. "I am seriously thinking whether the Government can pay a fixed compensation directly to farmers instead of purchasing produce through outlets of the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMCs) or the Horticultural Producers Cooperative Marketing Societies (HOPCOMS). The Government is keen on ensuring that the ultimate beneficiary should be the farmer and not any trader or government officials."

Market information

Mr. Kumaraswamy said it was also the duty of the Agriculture Department to provide market information to farmers before sowing. For instance, after a slump in the price of tomato some time ago, the price had now shot up to Rs. 20 a kg in the retail market. Farmers in certain parts of the State, particularly Kolar, were again taking to tomato cultivation in a big way. "I will not be surprised if there is a glut in the market once again." It was the duty of the authorities concerned to provide the right information at the right time to farmers, he said.

Copra price

With reference to the slump in the price of copra and farmers in Tiptur, Arsikere and other coconut-growing regions staging protests, the Chief Minister said the Government would take a decision on announcing the support price for copra in a week. The Government was not sure whether copra stocks were being held by traders and middlemen or by farmers themselves. Officials had been asked to make a detailed inquiry and submit a report.

The Chief Minister also expressed anguish over the increasing number of suicide by farmers, which had suddenly shot up over the past month. Twelve farmers suicides were reported to have ended their lives over the past month, with seven cases in the past fortnight. "I appeal to farmers to make the optimum use of the subsidised loan scheme introduced by the Government. It is for both the Centre and State Governments to work together in preventing suicide by farmers," he said.

A total of 178 farmers committed suicide over the past year, and 44 of these cases were due to indebtedness. The Government paid compensation of Rs. 1 lakh to the families of some of the farmers and the remaining families would be paid compensation after ascertaining the facts.

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