09-07-2007, 01:00 AM
<b>UPA pays dollars to US farmers, Indian kisan perishes</b><!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->New Delhi: Rs 8,500 per tonne for the Indian farmer, and Rs 16,000 per tonne for farmers abroad. The government's decision to import wheat despite a good harvest is leading to growing unrest within the alliance.
The UPA government's decision to import 7.9 lakh tonnes of wheat at 390 dollars per tonne has come in for severe criticism and the UPA is finding itself increasingly isolated over the issue.
Not just the opposition, but itâs own allies too are up in arms against this decision. Brinda Karat has written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
âWe have asked for an inquiry into this decision. Since it has caused an inexplicable loss of Rs 542 crore to the exchequer,â said Karat.
This after canceling tenders for the import of 10 lakh tonnes wheat at a much lower 263 dollars per tonne. Now, the same government is willing to shell out 127 dollars more per tonne.
Compare the rates it offered to it's own farmersâRs 850 per quintal. And the rate for imports, a whopping Rs 1,600 per quintal.
<b>âYou have paid out Rs 1,935 crore to foreign traders for importing 13 plus lakhs of wheat.â
Brinda.... the same money could have been given to indian farmers
The BJP has been demanding a CBI inquiry...
This is a scam. The govt is paying higher prices to farmers abroad than to it's own farmers. There are questions over the quality of the imported wheat,â said BJP MP Sushma Swaraj. </b>
A reform in the existing laws allowed private traders to procure wheat from the Mandis, which led to a shortfall in buffer stocks. But what prevented the government from raising its own procurement price to make it competitive with the private sector?
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The UPA government's decision to import 7.9 lakh tonnes of wheat at 390 dollars per tonne has come in for severe criticism and the UPA is finding itself increasingly isolated over the issue.
Not just the opposition, but itâs own allies too are up in arms against this decision. Brinda Karat has written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
âWe have asked for an inquiry into this decision. Since it has caused an inexplicable loss of Rs 542 crore to the exchequer,â said Karat.
This after canceling tenders for the import of 10 lakh tonnes wheat at a much lower 263 dollars per tonne. Now, the same government is willing to shell out 127 dollars more per tonne.
Compare the rates it offered to it's own farmersâRs 850 per quintal. And the rate for imports, a whopping Rs 1,600 per quintal.
<b>âYou have paid out Rs 1,935 crore to foreign traders for importing 13 plus lakhs of wheat.â
Brinda.... the same money could have been given to indian farmers
The BJP has been demanding a CBI inquiry...
This is a scam. The govt is paying higher prices to farmers abroad than to it's own farmers. There are questions over the quality of the imported wheat,â said BJP MP Sushma Swaraj. </b>
A reform in the existing laws allowed private traders to procure wheat from the Mandis, which led to a shortfall in buffer stocks. But what prevented the government from raising its own procurement price to make it competitive with the private sector?
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