The central government recently released the draft National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing, which aims to create a competitive and transparent agricultural marketing ecosystem. The policy emphasises digital innovations and coordination between the Central and state governments. It also aims to promote inclusive growth by redesigning agricultural value chains, leveraging technologies like blockchain, and addressing infrastructure gaps.
However, the policy has faced criticism from various farmer leaders, the Punjab government, and opposition parties in the state. They argue that the framework mirrors the controversial farm laws introduced in 2020, which were later repealed after a 13-month-long farmers’ protest at Delhi’s borders. The framework highlights the growth of India’s agricultural sector with significant achievements in food grains, oilseeds, and horticulture from 2016 to 2023.
However, it also points out challenges like fragmented landholdings, inadequate market access, and price volatility that impact small and marginal farmers, necessitating urgent policy interventions to ensure fair prices and stable income. Key initiatives include allowing farmers to sell their produce across various platforms, promoting private investment in market infrastructure, encouraging the adoption of digital trading and e-market platforms, and simplifying licensing norms while providing grievance redressal mechanisms for farmers and buyers. Farmer leaders argue that the draft reintroduces elements of the repealed farm laws.
For example, the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act allowed farmers to sell outside the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMCs), a feature mirrored in the draft’s provision for freedom to sell produce anywhere. The policy’s emphasis on private investment and infrastructure development aligns with another repealed law that promoted contract farming and privatisation.
Punjab’s stance on agricultural reforms
Both the farm laws and the new framework advocate digitisation. However, the policy is silent on the issue of Minimum Support Price (MSP) guarantees, a critical concern for farmers. The draft policy framework incorporates lessons from the backlash against the farm laws.
It emphasises regulation, state involvement, and addressing farmers’ concerns. Unlike the farm laws, which bypassed APMCs, the framework seeks to modernise and integrate APMCs with private markets. This aims to preserve APMCs while fostering competition, ensuring that a vital component of India’s agricultural ecosystem is not undermined.
Despite these measures, the National Policy Framework faces significant challenges. Its silence on MSP guarantees continues to be a major concern for farmers. Ensuring that private investments and digital solutions are accessible to marginal farmers is another critical issue.
The framework’s success will depend on its ability to address farmers’ apprehensions, particularly regarding price guarantees and equitable access to benefits. Jagmohan Singh, General Secretary of the Bharti Kisan Union (Dakaunda), remarked that both the 2020 farm laws and the 2024 draft policy share common objectives, such as promoting alternative marketing channels, facilitating direct marketing and contract farming, and encouraging private sector participation. However, the framework needs to address historical concerns and inclusively deliver on its promises to achieve the desired outcomes.
