Previous governments ignored demands for MSP hike: Modi
Midnapore (West Bengal), July 16 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said previous governments had failed to hike the Minimum Support Prices (MSP) of crops despite farmers' demands and expert panels' recommendations.
"The demand for raising the MSP was placed before every government. Many commissions and committees were formed. But every time it was stalled. Files kept on piling," said the Prime Minister.
"The farmers went on demanding and agitating... but neither the state governments nor those in power in Delhi heard them. After BJP came to power, we have decided to provide MSP at one-and-a-half times of the input costs," Modi told a rally here.
"The hike would empower farmers of West Bengal as well," the Prime Minister said.
The centre recently approved an MSP, providing farmers a profit of 50 per cent or more over "cost of production" for Kharif crops for 2018-19.
"My government is your government and it is a pro-farmer government," he told the famers.
Based on the Costs and Prices (CACP)-fixed input cost, the MSP for paddy was increased by Rs 200 (50.09 per cent) to Rs 1,750 per quintal, while for 'Grade A' paddy, it went up by Rs 180 (51.8 per cent) to Rs 1,770 per quintal.
The Centre also hiked the MSP by 50 per cent for groundnut at Rs 4,890 per quintal, for moong at 6,975 per quintal, for sunflower Rs 5,388 per quintal, for soybean at Rs 3,399 per quintal, for sesame at Rs 6,249 per quintal and for Niger seed at Rs 5,877 per quintal.
He said the MSP for raw jute has also been increased by Rs 200 a quintal for this year.
"When we came to power in 2014, the raw jute price was less than Rs 2,000 a quintal. Now, the same has been increased by over Rs 1,700 a quintal over the last four years. Bengal's jute farmers are benefitted by the increased price," Modi said.
Reiterating Centre's commitment to farmers, Modi said his government was working to double farmers' income by 2022.
Refering to his government's decision to consider bamboo as a grass, Modi said farmers could now produce, cut and sell bamboo, which previously had to be imported.
"Previous governments regarded bamboo as a tree. So, the country's peasants and tribals had no right to cut or sell bamboo. We had to spend thousands of crores on its import. Today, our peasants can produce bamboo on their land, and sell it. Our decision has greatly benefitted the farmers," he said.
Modi said agriculture markets have been integrated through e-NAM (electronic National Agriculture Market), enabling farmers to sell their produce after taking price information on their mobile phones.
"We are working to upgrade around 22,000 gramin haats (rural markets) with requisite infrastructure," he said. "I hope West Bengal will take steps towards reforming the agriculture market," he said.
Criticising the West Bengal government for not setting up a robust cold chain supply, he said the Centre took up the project Operation Greens laying priority on tomato, onions and potato.
Modi also said fishermen could be empowered with "Blue Revolution".
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismisses defence minister in surprise announcement
Jerusalem, Nov 5: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday dismissed his popular defence minister, Yoav Gallant, in a surprise announcement that came as the country is embroiled in wars on multiple fronts across the region.
Netanyahu and Gallant have repeatedly been at odds over the war in Gaza. But Netanyahu had avoided firing his rival. Netanyahu cited “significant gaps” and a “crisis of trust” between the men in his Tuesday evening announcement.
“In the midst of a war, more than ever, full trust is required between the prime minister and defence minister,” Netanyahu said. “Unfortunately, although in the first months of the campaign there was such trust and there was very fruitful work, during the last months this trust cracked between me and the defence minister.”
In the early days of the war, Israel's leadership presented a unified front as it responded to Hamas' October 7, 2023, attack. But as the war dragged on and spread to Lebanon, key policy differences have emerged. While Netanyahu has called for continued military pressure on Hamas, Gallant had taken a more pragmatic approach, saying that military force has created the necessary conditions for a diplomatic deal that could bring home hostages held by the Hamas group.
Gallant, a former general who has gained public respect with a gruff, no-nonsense personality, said in a statement: “The security of the state of Israel always was, and will always remain, my life's mission."
Gallant has worn a simple, black buttoned shirt throughout the war in a sign of sorrow over the October 7 attack and developed a strong relationship with his US counterpart, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin.
A previous attempt by Netanyahu to fire Gallant in March 2023 sparked widespread street protests against Netanyahu. He also flirted with the idea of dismissing Gallant over the summer but held off until Tuesday's announcement.
Gallant will be replaced by Foreign Minister Israel Katz, a Netanyahu loyalist and veteran Cabinet minister who was a junior officer in the military. Gideon Saar, a former Netanyahu rival who recently rejoined the government, will take the foreign affairs post.
Netanyahu has a long history of neutralising his rivals. In his statement, he claimed he had made “many attempts” to bridge the gaps with Gallant.
“But they kept getting wider. They also came to the knowledge of the public in an unacceptable way, and worse than that, they came to the knowledge of the enemy - our enemies enjoyed it and derived a lot of benefit from it,” he said.
