BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh government is likely to compensate farmers selling their crops below the Market Support Price (MSP), with the money being directly deposited into their bank accounts. According to The Indian Express, this scheme is likely to be passed on Tuesday, August 22, by the Cabinet. The money to be deposited in the accounts will be calculated by finding the difference between the MSP and the modal price, a price to be decided by the government keeping in mind the average selling price in the three big mandis for a period of over two months or so. Some of the Kharif crops included in the scheme are soybean, maize, moong and arhar. A few rabi crops might be included too, depending on the outcome of the scheme. The crops would be sold between October 16 and December 15 this year and the money would be deposited in the accounts after December 15.
The registration process for this scheme will begin on September 1. The details to be provided by the farmers will include the details of their bank accounts, Aadhaar number, their phone numbers and various other personal details. Additionally, they will also have to submit the details of their cultivation and acreage. As reported by the Indian Express, the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan called the scheme Mukhyamantri Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana and said that providing lucrative prices to the farmers was his government’s first priority.
G S Kaushal, former agriculture director said that the scheme is likely to face irregularities due to certain complications that exist in it. Quoting him, the Indian Express reported, “What if traders refuse to buy in mandis. They can’t be forced.” Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS), an affiliation of the RSS, leader Shivkant Dixit said that the scheme is likely to work in the long run.
