New Delhi, December 7: During a two-hour pre-budget consultation with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday, representatives from the farming community and agricultural stakeholders presented a series of proposals aimed at addressing the sector’s challenges. Their key demands included cheaper long-term credit, reduced taxes, and an increase in the PM-KISAN income support scheme.
The discussions focused on a range of issues impacting agriculture, including financial relief, market reforms, and strategic investments. Bharat Krishak Samaj Chairman, Ajay Vir Jakhar, emphasized the need for focused interventions to enhance agricultural productivity and improve farmer welfare.
Key proposals included reducing interest rates on agricultural loans to as low as 1% and doubling the PM-KISAN annual instalment from Rs 6,000 to Rs 12,000. Farmers' organizations also called for zero-premium crop insurance for small farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana.
Taxation reforms were a significant part of the proposals, with stakeholders advocating for GST exemptions on agricultural machinery, fertilizers, seeds, and medicines. The PHD Chambers of Commerce and Industry also urged a reduction in the GST on pesticides from 18% to 5%.
Jakhar proposed a focused investment strategy of Rs 1,000 crore annually for eight years to support specific crops such as chickpeas, soybean, and mustard. The goal is to boost national agricultural productivity, reduce import dependency, and enhance nutritional security across the country, he said after the meeting.
Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Dharmendra Malik called for a thorough review of the Minimum Support Price (MSP) mechanism, advocating for calculations that include land rent, farm wages, and post-harvest costs. He also pushed for the publication of agricultural machinery prices on company websites, improved mandi infrastructure, and a broader MSP coverage beyond the 23 commodities currently included. Additionally, Malik urged that imports below MSP levels be banned and minimum export prices should only be fixed in exceptional cases.
PHD Chambers’ Agribusiness Committee Chairman RG Agarwal echoed the call for a reduction in GST on pesticides, highlighting the need to crack down on the sale of smuggled and counterfeit pesticides while ensuring data protection for new agricultural innovations.
In addition to these proposals, more ambitious reforms were suggested, such as including agriculture in the Concurrent List of the Constitution and creating a centralized Indian Agricultural Service.
The meeting, which also included Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary and senior officials from the finance and agriculture ministries, saw participation from farmer producer companies, agricultural associations, and representatives from the corporate sector.
