Category: Issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies – GS3E

Minimum Support Price

Context:

Recently cabinet has announced MSP for 14 Kharif crops

What is MSP?

  •  Minimum Support Price (MSP) is a form of Market Intervention by the Government of India to insure agricultural producers against any sharp fall in farm prices.
  • The MSP is announced by the Government of India at the Beginning of the Sowing Season for certain crops on the basis of the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP).
  • MSP is a Guarantee Price for their produce from the Government.
  • The major objectives are to Support the Farmers from Distress Sales and to Procure Food Grains for Public Distribution.
  • In case the market price for the commodity falls below the announced minimum price due to bumper production and glut in the market, government agencies purchase the entire quantity offered by the farmers at the announced minimum price.

Factors Determining the MSP:

  • Cost of production
  • Changes in input prices
  •  Input-output price parity
  • Trends in market prices
  • Demand and supply
  •  Inter-crop price parity
  • Effect on industrial cost structure
  • Effect on cost of living
  • Effect on general price level
  • International price situation
  • Parity between prices paid and prices received by the farmers.
  • Effect on issue prices and implications for subsidy.

Establishment of ‘gokul grams’ under Rashtriya Gokul Mission

Why in News?

  • Funds  have  been  mobilized  under  Rashtriya  Gokul  Mission  (RGM)  for  setting  up  of  21 Gokul Grams as Integrated Cattle Development Centres.

Rashtriya Gokul Mission:

  • The RGM has been launched by the Government for conservation and development of indigenous breeds in a focused and scientific manner.
  • The mission envisages establishment of integrated cattle development centres „Gokul
  • Grams to develop indigenous breeds including upto 40% nondescript breeds.
  • Rashtriya  Gokul  Mission  is  a  focussed  project  under  National  Programme  for  Bovine Breeding  and  Dairy  Development,  with  an  outlay  of  Rs  500  crore during  for three  years from 2014-15 to 2016-17.

Objectives:

  • Development and conservation of indigenous breeds
  • Breed improvement programme for indigenous cattle breeds to improve their genetic makeup and increase the stock; Enhancement of milk production and productivity;
  • Upgradation of nondescript cattle using elite indigenous breeds like Gir, Sahiwal, Rathi, Deoni, Tharparkar, Red Sindhi and Distribution of disease free high genetic merit bulls for natural service.

Implementing Agency:

  • Rashtriya Gokul Mission is being implemented through “State Implementing Agencies (SIA) viz Livestock Development Boards.
  • All Agencies having a role in indigenous cattle development are “Participating Agencies” like CFSPTI, CCBFs, ICAR, Universities, Colleges, NGO‟s, Cooperative Societies.

Gokul Gram:

  • These are Indigenous Cattle Centres and will act as Centres for development of Indigenous Breeds.
  • They’ll be established- a) in native breeding tracts and b) near metropolitan cities for housing the urban cattle.
  • A dependable source for supply of high genetic breeding stock to the farmers in the breeding tract.
  • Self-sustaining and will generate economic resources from sale of milk, organic manure, vermi-composting, urine distillates, and production of electricity from bio gas for in house consumption and sale of animal products.
  • Also function as state of the art in situ training centre for Farmers, Breeder.

BT BRINJAL

  • Bacillus Thuringiensis Brinjal, popularly known as Bt brinjal is a type of Genetically Modified crop.
  • Bt brinjal, a genetically modified strain created by inserting Cry 1Ac gene from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis into Brinjal.
  • It gives resistance against Lepidopteron insects like brinjal fruit and shoot borer and fruit borer. Mechanism- ingestion
  • of Bt toxin by insect there is disruption of digestive process resulting in death of insect.

Concern:

  • Potential health effects.
  • terminator seed- i.e. farmer will be compel to buy seed from the company every time.

Genetically Modified Crop:

  • It Involves inserting DNA into Genome of an organism
  • UPSC question on Genetic Modified Crops- 2018.

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