Chandigarh,
At the receiving end of allegations regarding non-implementation of Swaminathan Commission report, Manohar Lal Khattar government today announced the setting up of a farmers’ welfare authority to “mitigate physical, financial and psychological distress of households and landless workers”.

The setting up of the “Haryana kisan kalyan pradhikaran” with a view to making agriculture remunerative and enhancing agricultural productivity and farmers’ income was announced by Khattar during the BJP government’s flagship “Ek Aur Sudhar” here today.

The announcement of setting up of the “pradhikaran” came in the pre-election year in the backdrop of opposition parties and farmers’ organisations getting restive about the BJP government’s “anti-farmer” policies.

In its election manifesto ahead of the 2014 parliamentary and Assembly elections, the BJP had promised to implement Swaminathan Commission report, aimed at giving remunerative prices to farmers for their produce.

However, after coming to power at the Centre and in the state, the BJP had developed cold feet on the implementation of Swaminathan Commission report claiming that it could not be implemented in one go. Agriculture Minister Om Prakash Dhankar, who as BJP Kisan Morcha chief, was a strong votary of the implementation of Swaminathan Commission report, was ‘non-commital’ on its full implementation.

In an obvious bid to strike an emotional chord with the farming commumity, Khattar was at pains today to emphasise how the state government was sensitive to the condition of farmers.

“The state government’s decision to establish the ‘pradhikaran’ is aimed at providing relief to farm households in meeting the challenges of situations, besides increasing their income,” Khattar asserted.

While the Chief Minister would be the chairperson of the ‘pradhikaran’, the Agriculture Minister would be the ex-officio vice-chairman.

The ex-officio members included the Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Horticulture and Fisheries Minister, Industries and Commerce Minister and senior officers.

The ‘pradhikaran’ would undertake all possible measures to make agriculture remunerative and enhance agricultural productivity to mitigate the physical, financial and psychological distress of farm households and landless workers.

It would maintain close liaison with departments for implementation and monitoring of schemes, programmes and projects thorough the Agriculture Advisory Council and issue necessary guidelines from time to time.