New Delhi, July 4: Swaraj India leader Yogendra Yadav on Wednesday said that a "historic struggle" by the farmers "forced" the government to hike Minimum Support Price (MSP) for Kharif crops, though it is "not the price" what Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised before 2014 Lok sabha elections.

"The MSP announcements of Kharif 2018-19 is a small victory for farmers. In this election year, the Modi Government has been forced to partially act, at least on paper, on the promise of remunerative MSP that it had made before the previous election," Yadav said in a statement. 

Finding flaws with the MSP announcement, he said that the announced MSP has not been "computed at 50 per cent above comprehensive cost (C2) being demanded by farmers' organisations.

"It is not the price promised by PM Modi in hundreds of election meetings and contained in the 2014 election manifesto of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)."

He also raised concern over implementation of the decision, saying: "It is not an immediate relief to farmers, it is merely a promise, the fulfilment of which depends on government procurement and intensive support, something that has been lacking till now."

Stressing to make MSP as a legal right, he said that unless MSP is prepared as a legal right, for enforcement, it remains "discretionary" and farmers will be left at the "mercy" of the next government. 

Drawing a comparison between the UPA II and NDA governments, Avik Saha, National Convenor of Jai Kisan Andolan, in a statement said: "There is nothing historic or substantial about the MSP hike - it is in fact lower than the hikes given by UPA II government, in respect of almost all crops. For paddy, while the average hike provided by the UPA II was 69 per cent, the Modi government's hike is only 41 per cent." 

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Bengaluru (PTI): A five-year-old boy was injured after he was allegedly kicked by a neighbour while playing near his uncle’s house, police said on Friday.

The incident occurred in Thyagarajanagar on December 14.

CCTV footage of the incident showed the child, identified as Neev Jain, playing badminton with other children outside the house when a man approached him from behind and suddenly kicked him.

The impact caused the boy to fall to the ground. The man was then seen casually walking away from the spot without offering any help or showing concern, the footage showed.

Police said a preliminary inquiry revealed that the accused is suffering from a mental health disorder and is undergoing treatment.

According to police, in her complaint, the boy’s mother, Deepika Jain, stated that she had visited her elder brother Manoj’s house on December 14.

At around 1.10 pm, while her son was playing with other children near the house, a resident of the neighbouring house, identified as Ranjan, allegedly kicked the child without provocation.

As a result, the boy fell and sustained bleeding above the eyebrow and abrasions on his hands and legs, she said.

Based on the complaint, a case was registered under Section 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The accused was arrested and later released, a senior police officer said.