Farmers in Madhya Pradesh are protesting in Bhopal, demanding full procurement of their record moong crop at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) and addressing issues with fertilizer distribution and availability. The protest, organized by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, highlights a significant gap between the harvested produce and the government's purchase limit, forcing farmers into a volatile open market.

Farmers in Madhya Pradesh are protesting in Bhopal, demanding full procurement of their record moong crop at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) and addressing issues with fertilizer distribution and availability. The protest, organized by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, highlights a significant gap between the harvested produce and the government's purchase limit, forcing farmers into a volatile open market.

Farmers in Madhya Pradesh are protesting in Bhopal, demanding full procurement of their record moong crop at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) and addressing issues with fertilizer distribution and availability. The protest, organized by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, highlights a significant gap between the harvested produce and the government's purchase limit, forcing farmers into a volatile open market.

Farmers in Madhya Pradesh marched to Bhopal on Tuesday morning to launch a protest that continued overnight. The protesters arrived in the city carrying sacks of gram, bedding and cooking utensils and food for a week.

The farmers broke through the police barricade and attempted to reach the chief minister's residence at the Veer Savarkar Bridge. They then began a sit-in protest and raised slogans.

The protests were organised by 19 organisations under the banner of Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM).

They demanded that the government agree to a 100 per cent procurement of the state’s moong crop at the minimum support price. They also wanted the abolition of an e-token system that is used for fertiliser distribution and a timely and adequate availability of fertilisers.

The issue stems from the excess moong production this season of harvest. Farmers produced up to 1410 kilograms of moong per hectare. The expected total harvest is expected to be around 20.16 lakh metric tonnes statewide.

Despite the huge production, the Centre has agreed to produce only about 4.54 lakh metric tonnes of the crop under the Price Support scheme, The Economic Times reported. The scheme procures crop directly from farmers at the declared minimum support price when the market rates drop below the threshold.

The amount the government has agreed to buy leaves out a massive amount of harvest without a guaranteed buyer. This would mean the harvest would likely land in an open market which sells crops below the MSP.

The farmers then would earn less than what the crop should have made in a harvest season.

The other demand of the protesters involves the digital booking process, which schedules when and where the farmers can sell their produce at government centres. Farmers say that the process is complicated. Out of the 3.47 lakh farmers who registered to sell moong this season, only 82,000 have managed to complete a transaction.

The third demand is that they receive timely access to fertiliser at fair prices ahead of the next sowing cycles without the delays that currently clog the system.

State Agriculture Minister Aidal Singh Kansana has written to Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan asking for the procurement ceiling to be raised to 8.06 lakh metric tonnes, 40 per cent of the projected harvest.

Last year the state ended up procuring 7.72 lakh metric tonnes despite the original target being just 4.19 lakh metric tonnes. Kansana has also asked the centre to reallocate unused procurement quotas from other states that did not meet the demands to Madhya Pradesh.

The MP government has formed a panel to hold talks with the farmers. The move comes after the first round of talks remained inconclusive. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said that they will find a solution to the problem through dialogue.

The protests are currently on their third day.

Farmer’s organisations say that the administration is making attempts to suppress the protests. The police and administration have made barricades on roads leading out of the villages in several districts. Schools near Hoshangabad Road have declared a holiday today due to disruption from the protests.

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