Ask FCI to procure food grains to a comfortable level: BJP

New Delhi, Sep 26 (UNI) Expressing its disappointment over the Congress Chief Ministers paying lip sympathy to the farmers and skirting the real issues confronting them and the agriculture sector, the BJP today demanded the government to allow Food Corporation of India to procure wheat to a comfortable level.

Stating the Congress CM's conference concluded recently at Nainital, had turned itself a "club of self-praisers", BJP Spokesman Prakash Javadekar said the conclave deliberated the farmers issue for 11 hours and ironically, 11 farmers had committed suicides in Mahrasthra alone. ''India, is amidst an agrarian crisis and the non-functional UPA government is playing a mute spectator,'' he added.

Asking the government to adopt a flexible policy or competitive pricing to ensure better deal for the farmers by way of upward revision of Minimum Support Price (MSP) to meet the cost of rising cost of production for all crops before the commencement of procurement, he said increasing the import duty on cotton and other agriculture produce to protect Indian farmers was a must.

''Agriculture credit should be available at six per cent interest,'' he demanded.

Mr Javadekar said pragmatic buffer stock management was a key issue and the recent price rise across the board for all essential commodities was the bad management of buffer stock, later decision about imports and unnecessary reduction of import duties and unremunerative MSP.

He said the the relief package announced by the PM in Vidarbha had failed to deal with the situation and unless the policy reforms were put in place, the situation will go from bad to worse.

Turning to hike in petroleum products, the BJP Spokesman said the seventh hike announced was on the basis of rising international Crude Oil prices when the world market was hovering around 60 to 77 dollars a barrel. However during the last one month, the prices had slumped to 58 dollars and hence, the government should heed to the advice of Tax Reforms Commission to have specific duties instead of ad valorem. ''The last time the government attempted to palm it on the states. Now the government mus give immediate relief to the already harassed consumer by reducing petrol and diesel prices atleast by Rs three a litre,'' he demanded.

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