Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court has sought replies from the Centre, the Rajasthan govt and procurement agencies on a PIL seeking a legal guarantee for procurement of notified crops at the minimum support price (MSP).Hearing farmer leader Rampal Jat’s 2018 petition on July 3, a division bench of Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Manish Sharma directed the respondents to explain why crops notified under the MSP regime were allegedly not procured at the declared price and why adequate procurement infrastructure was not created.The court directed the Centre, the state govt and NAFED to file written replies before the next hearing on July 30. It also ordered that Food Corporation of India and Rajfed be added as parties to the case. FCI has been impleaded in relation to procurement of wheat, bajra and makka, while Rajfed has been added for procurement of pulses and oilseeds in Rajasthan.The directions came after submissions by petitioner Rampal Jat and court-appointed amicus curiae advocate Pradeep Chaudhary.Jat has sought a direction to make Section 9(2)(XII) of the Rajasthan Krishi Upaj Mandi Adhiniyam, 1961, mandatory so that notified crops are procured only at the declared MSP, similar to the procurement system in the sugar sector.The petition also seeks implementation of the Warehousing Development and Regulation Act, 2007, and its rules, to allow farmers to obtain loans against produce stored in warehouses when market prices fall below MSP.Jat contended that farmers in Rajasthan suffered losses due to non-procurement of crops such as bajra since 2012, along with makka, moong and chana. He alleged that while procurement guidelines allow operations for up to 90 days, procurement by FCI for foodgrains and by NAFED and Rajfed for pulses and oilseeds usually lasted only 60 to 65 days, limiting farmers’ access to MSP.
