Agriculturists and farm economists on Saturday urged Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to provide special package to boost the domestic output of pulses and oilseeds. Later the Minister and her team also heard suggestions from representatives of MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises).

These two groups were part of the pre-budget consultation, chaired by Sitharaman and attended by Minister of State in the Finance Ministry Pankaj Chaudhary, along with senior officials of the Finance Ministry.

In his submission, Ajay Vir Jakhar, Chairman of Bharat Krishak Samaj, suggested deploying ₹1,000 crore per year on three crops; in Pulses – gram/chickpea and in Oilseeds – soyabean (Kharif) & mustard (Rabi) for 8 years. “Not only Indian consumption and yield potential being very high, it will help reduce dependence on excessive imports, while resulting in higher national nutritional security and farmer profitability,” he said.

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Another suggestion was to reform the sector by enacting new laws or councils has only increased over time. The most problematic area is perishable horticulture produce (fruits & vegetables). Uniform taxation in the agricultural markets across India (like the GST) will pave the way for improved governance, systems efficiency, mitigation of food inflation and price fluctuations, ignite entrepreneurial spirits to drive competition to benefit farmers and consumers alike.

The market fee and other charges collected by all the States in 2018-19 from horticulture produce was about ₹900 crores. Data for later years is not available. Even on a very optimistic level, if the market fess collection from horticulture produce doubled over 5 years, it would not exceed ₹2,000 crores. Financially constrained states are reluctant to forego sources of revenue, speakers suggested.

Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) Speaker Dharmendra Malik demanded a comprehensive review of the Minimum Support Price (MSP) mechanism, seeking calculations that include land rent, farm wages, and post-harvest expenses. He also demanded the display of agricultural machinery prices on company websites, improvement in mandi infrastructure, widening MSP coverage beyond 23 commodities, disallowing imports below MSP levels and fixing minimum export prices only in emergencies.

PHD Chambers of Commerce and Industry Chairman (Agribusiness committee) RG Agarwal called for a reduction in GST on pesticides from 18 per cent to five per cent, while highlighting the need to curb the sale of smuggled and fake pesticides while ensuring data protection for new molecular developments.

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The meeting with farmer organisations comes at a time when scores of farmers are protesting at the borders of Delhi demanding the provision for legal backing to minimum support price (MSP) of agricultural produce and the enactment of a law to this effect in the current Winter Session of Parliament. Protesters also want the government to ensure at least a 50 per cent profit margin and waive their debts, as well as to honour a promise to double their incomes.

Separately, the Reserve Bank of India has increased the collateral-free agricultural loan limit from ₹1.6 lakh to ₹2 lakh per borrower. The decision is aimed at enhancing credit access for farmers without requiring security, addressing the needs of small and marginal farmers.