Leaders feel farmers may have bought into the BJP’s promise to pay Rs 3,100 as paddy MSP if it came to power
Odisha is at a historic crossroads in its political history as it has voted for change after nearly a quarter of a century of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) rule. As the party searches for reasons behind its spectacular defeat, it could do well to look into the issue of farmer grievances.
More than 75 per cent of Odisha’s population depends on agriculture for a living. A majority grow paddy. The state paddy procurement target was 7.9 million tonnes (MT) in Kharif and 1.4 MT in Rabi.
Fair price for paddy is a big issue in the state. The districts of Sambalpur and Bargarh are located in the command area of the Hirakud dam on the Mahanadi river. Bargarh is also called ‘Odisha’s rice bowl’.
Demonstrations and protests by farmers in the two districts forced national parties like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress to make a state-specific announcement on the issue in their 2024 election manifestos.
The two parties promised to increase the MSP for paddy to Rs 3,100 and Rs 3,000 per quintal respectively if they came to power in the state. On the other hand, the BJD did not make any specific announcement regarding MSP for farmers.
‘Disappointed with BJD’
Many farmers working for the BJD have been miffed with the party for not coming out with an MSP-specific policy. Kesaba Pradhan, who waited to welcome the party’s MLA candidate at Sindurpank village on the outskirts of Sambalpur city, said: “We felt let down that the BJD did not make its stand clear on MSP.”
Pradhan said he knew that formulating a policy for MSP lies solely with the central government. However, the state government could have announced a bonus on the MSP as the Bhupesh Baghel government in Chhattisgarh did.
Sindurpank comes under the Rengali assembly segment of Sambalpur Lok Sabha constituency. Other farmers who gathered for the MLA candidate’s rally, echoed Pradhan’s sentiments. They said as party supporters, they all would vote for the BJD. But it might not be the case for many other farmers.
Before the 2019 elections, the BJD government had introduced the KALIA — Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation — scheme for farmers. The party subsequently reaped a bumper harvest in the election.
Under KALIA, the government provided Rs 4,000 for two crop seasons in a year to small and marginal farmer households in order to help them buy seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and other agricultural inputs. The scheme also provided financial assistance of Rs 12,500 to landless agricultural households. They could spend the amount on allied activities like goat rearing and fishery kit.
In February 2024, the BJD government extended the KALIA scheme by another three years, obviously keeping the impending elections in view. However, it had lost its novelty.
Over the last five years, allegations of some discrepancies in the distribution of KALIA funds — many real farmers being left out of it and non-farmers getting the money — took some shine off the scheme as a poll plank.
Farmers at Sindurpank, which comes under the canal system of Hirakud dam, said they had been excluded from the list of KALIA beneficiaries after their villages were incorporated into the Sambalpur Municipal Corporation’s city area. They were left out of the KALIA scheme as they had been included in urban areas. But nothing was done to compensate them.
In neighbouring Bargarh district, farmers were unhappy with both the BJD and BJP for not addressing the issue. Farmers also lamented a lack of proper facilities to facilitate sale of their paddy, which often led to their produce being underrated.
Lingaraj, co-convenor of Paschim Odisha Krushak Samanmaya Samiti (western Odisha farmers’ coordination committee), said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced in 2014 that his government would implement the Swaminathan Commission recommendations of paying farmers double of their production cost if the BJP came to power at the Centre. But he did not fulfill his promise even after 10 years. “The BJP’s Odisha-specific promise of Rs 3,100 cannot be taken at face value. But during the elections, many farmers may have fallen for it,” he said.
Before the elections, the POKSS had held workshops of farmers across Bargarh and Sambalpur Lok Sabha constituencies and asked them not to vote for the BJD and BJP because of their anti-farmer policies.
Besides the issue of fair price of paddy, farmers across Odisha also voiced their concerns over a lack of cold storage infrastructure for their vegetables.
Teishipur Gram Panchayat under Pipli assembly segment of Puri Lok Sabha constituency is famous for the cultivation of egg plant and other vegetables and fruits. But village residents said they sell their vegetables and fruits at throwaway prices as they do not have a cold storage facility.
The residents repeatedly appealed to their local BJD MLA to establish a cold storage in Teishipur. But it proved futile. “There are over 6,000 voters in the Gram Panchayat and most of them are BJD supporters. But this time, they were unsure of their voting preferences,” said a village resident.
Incidentally, the BJD sitting MLA, Rudra Maharathi, from Pipli lost the election.
Did these grievances influence voting patterns? Farmer leader Saroj Mohanty said it was difficult to say since farmers were not organised as a potent political force across Odisha to influence the outcome in a big way. But he added that their grievances had an indirect impact during elections.
For instance, due to POKSS’ appeal, many farmers refrained from voting. At the same time, many farmers became political workers of major political parties like the BJD, BJP and Congress during the elections.
“I feel that the promise of MSP of Rs 3,100 per quintal has swayed farmers in many farming areas of the state in favour of the BJP,” Mohanty said.
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