Tag: farm laws

The revoking of the three farm laws is likely to leave a serious policy gap as they were central to the reform path envisaged by the 15th Finance Commission for India‘s agriculture sector, if its own reports are an indicator.

The farm laws find strong advocacy in both the interim and final reports of the panel, prising open the question of how much their revocation will impact the reform and performance incentive framework envisaged and recommended for agriculture by the commission. It has recommended that ₹45,000 crore be set aside to grant performance incentives to states for ushering in agricultural reforms. Chairman of the 15th Finance Commission, NK Singh, however, maintained that this should not be seen as a “setback” given that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also announced a panel to address various issues raised in the panel report.

“I don’t view it as a setback,” he told ET. “The report was submitted in a particular context when these laws were there. The performance matrix we have drawn up is a whole lot more than the farm laws and they are not contingent on the latter.”

While the commission had earlier tied grant of incentives to states to implementation of model laws on farmer produce facilitation and contract farming, once it was satisfied that its recommendations on policy gaps were addressed through the new farm laws, it went on to identify four other criteria. These are – land lease reforms, sustainable and efficient water use in agriculture, export promotion, and contribution towards Atmanirbhar Bharat.

With the assurance of the larger reform structure afforded by the farm laws now gone, the efficacy and adequacy of the performance incentives framework for states is bound to come under question.

Singh, however, said the performance matrix drawn up by the commission are not contingent on the farm laws. “They are in keeping with the idea of a new India, also in tune with the ecological sustainability concerns discussed recently at Glasgow climate conference and , in fact, a key aspect of reform,” he said.

“Sustainable water usage and agricultural practices, crop diversification are very much the centrepiece of the commission’s recommendations,” Singh said. “They were also mentioned by the PM when he talked of the farm laws and many concerns will be taken up by the committee to be set up.”

The panel reports, however, seem to underline the centrality of the farm laws to the envisaged reform framework.