Hyderabad: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president K. T. Rama on Thursday termed the Seed Bill proposed by the Union Government as ‘anti-farmer’ and said his party reject it.
Rama Rao stated that the proposed Seeds Bill places the interests of corporate companies above those of farmers, and therefore, it must be stopped immediately.
KTR, as the BRS leader is popularly known, said that any new Seeds Bill must keep the farmer at the centre and must be founded on farmer welfare.
He emphasised that this Bill removes the role of State Governments in the matter of seeds, and hence everyone must oppose it.
He suggested that the Union Government should move forward on this Bill only after detailed discussions with farmers’ organisations, seed experts, agricultural experts, and political parties.
KTR said that the party has already submitted detailed feedback on the draft Seeds Bill proposed by the Centre.
He stated that the BRS strongly opposes the draft Seeds Bill being proposed by the Union government, as it will cause serious damage to the farmers. Therefore, he demanded that the Centre completely stop this Bill and move forward only after consultations with farmers, farmers’ unions, experts, and political parties.
KTR pointed out that the Bill lacks clarity on the measures to curb spurious seeds, and that there is no guarantee of timely compensation for farmers who suffer losses because of fake seeds.
He also said that the Bill contains provisions that allow corporate companies to influence seed pricing, and that the authority previously given to state governments to regulate seed prices will be lost.
He said that the Bill fails to hold companies accountable for the production of spurious seeds, placing responsibility only on sellers and the supply chain.
He added that there are no strong provisions for blacklisting companies nationally, nor for imposing heavy penalties or strict jail sentences in cases related to fake seeds.
KTR noted that in many places across the country, farmers still follow traditional practices of saving, producing, and using their own seeds. However, this Bill does not protect such farmer groups.
He also said that the Bill contains easy provisions allowing foreign companies to sell their seeds in the country without proper trials, which puts national seed security and seed sovereignty at risk.
He said that the Bill gives no importance to State Governments or agricultural universities in this matter. He also stated that the entire Bill paves the way for the Centre to dominate seed-related issues, which are crucial to agriculture within the states, thereby weakening the ability of States to frame their own laws according to local conditions.
KTR said that the responsibility of drafting a Seeds Bill that keeps the farmer at its centre lies with the Union government, and that the Centre must set aside attempts to hand over control to corporate companies under the name of “ease of doing business.”
He explained that the amendments proposed by the party emphasise seed sovereignty, domestic biosafety, and the need to avoid giving dominance to the Centre over state subjects.
He also suggested that strict provisions must be included to ensure that farmers who suffer losses due to fake seeds receive compensation based on the maximum potential yield per acre within a fixed timeframe.
(IANS)
