Centre to issue guidelines on contract farming: Pawar

Panaji, May 30 (UNI) Favouring introduction of ''contract farming'' to mitigate the plight of small landholders and reduce suicides, Union Agriculture Minister Shard Pawar today pleaded with states to come out with suitable legislative support in a big way.

The Centre, at the same time, would soon draft guidelines for consideration to prop legislative support to contract farming, he told mediapersons here.

''About 16 per cent of the 1.2 lakh suicides are being reported every year in the country. Of these, most suicides are by small land-holding farmers,'' Mr Pawar said.

Most farmers prefer non-agriculture vocations as farming is becoming ''unviable'' due to small land holdings and hence encouragement is given to contract farming, he explained.

With several measures being initiated by the UPA government at the Centre, the number of suicides have reduced. Encouragement to contract farming would go a long way in mitigating the sufferings of the small farmers, he added.

The co-operative farming experiment, made during 1950's during the time of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on the Soviet model failed because of several factors, Pawar said.

Under contract farming, cultivation rights will lie with the farmer and his produce will be offered a specific purchase price by the procurer through under-a-contract agreement. It seems to suit current times in Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Maharshtra and Gujarat.

He said the Centre is also keen to have a ''uniform agriculture policy'' and has forwarded its plan document to the Planing Commission of India for approval recently even as the states have been asked to develop district-level plans for agriculture.

''Our aim is to bring the agriculturally torpid states like Goa above the national average for which the Centre is ready to extend more support,'' Mr Pawar said.

Maharastra, Kerala and Karnataka have finalised their detailed programmes for agriculture development, he said.

While Goa has advanced in tourism, Maharashtra was in the forefront of Industry but has registered negative growth in agriculure, he said.

The Centre has provided Rs 16,000 crore assistance for agriculture with more than 64 per cent of the Indian population depending on farming, he added.

UNI