Food Fight
Tags: Food, People, Farming, Perspective, Politics

As the executives and producers of the country have their horns locked, the lack of an unbiased, selfless moderator paints a horrid picture. While the majority parliamentarians are welcoming a dialogue which seems nothing but logical, they fail to take note that the protestors are a creed to be pacified by pathos and not logos; something their antagonisers are well aware of. Thus, the opponents of the seemingly balanced bills which benefits the producers and takes a little economic load off the shoulders of the national treasury, have found a way to nurture an ethos against the majority. Even an amateur observer’s prognosis would conclude that this would end with the top echelons of the government dead in their harnesses, metaphorically, as one would hope that it never happens literally, dreading the recurrence of 1984, which has gained popularity in casual parlance across households since the beginning of the protest.

To cross the T’s and dot the I’s, one would want to talk to the farmers across the country and not their representatives who seem to parrot out the agenda that bought them. Farmers from Maharashtra, Gujarat and Punjab; the three states accessible to me, seem to have ambiguous opinions and the vehemence in their speech is dependent upon the degree of influence they have been subject to. This data does not show “repeal or nothing” in good light and hints at the sinister patterns behind the scene.

Farmers, more than bread producers have become the bread and butter of the opposition since farmer suicides caught attention over 3 decades ago. Essentially they play the scapegoats upon whom many of the baseless snides pronounced in the parliament could be pinned. As compared to farming in developed countries, ours relies on the number of people involved in it and not upon the end-results.

Farm issues more than farmers have become critical to maintaining the integrity of our country. WTO’s Agreement of Agriculture (AoA) in June of this year has shown countries like Australia, Canada, US and EU seeking a cut in the de minimis of entitlement to a farmer. Sounds familiar? Minimum Support Price (MSP) is the pop term. Reason for such international influence? The commodity traded gains value and the playing field becomes uneven for the goods, but fair to the producers. Conversely, a sustained MSP is in the favour of producers but hurts the country’s trade relations; which is dependent on agriculture to generate revenue since so much capital is being invested in it. Industries producing fertilizers, pesticides, hybrid seeds and other farm essentials are already operating at a low margin in the country, threatening to stop sales of products as well as raw materials if the conditions do not improve.

The producer does not govern the entire agricultural sector but is a contributor and beneficiary of it. While political figures scream and vilify their opponents on national television, sections of the population take a leaf from their representative’s book while exploiting social media; neither being related to agriculture in most cases. The lawmakers stand between the devil and the deep sea, the devil conspiring to become the next ruler, irrespective of the impacts on national trade relations, and the producers unaware of the insincerity from either of the sides is on its way to becoming luscious mutton from the scapegoat that s/he is today.

Examples where the producer supporters of today being the oppressors yesterday are not rare either. In 2016, Punjab farmers received only 40% of the total state funds issued, 2012 saw a quarter of the total farmer suicides happening in Maharashtra, and Delhi hardly has any agricultural ties to make any statements whatsoever. To neutralise the fact fuelled debasement of former oppressors, it is a must to mention the land-acquisition and producer-negligent farm laws in the name of liberalism in Gujarat, an objection which was raised in 2017. These complaints from the producers are state independent and point to the fact that nobody who seems concerned today has ever been truly empathetic towards these caretakers of the soil.

There isn’t an alternative to industrialisation, be it in any sector. The sooner we realise that, the better our preparations would be. The proliferation of technology and a fair economy can be the outcomes if we add clauses and direct the transition into industrialised agriculture instead of resisting it. A person who has met, worked for, and studied with farmers or their children understands that a core trait of those who have been involved in ploughing the land for generations, is orthodoxy and rigidity in beliefs. Since policy-makers believe this too, they have used trickery until now on countless occasions to get what they want from these people who will call a spade a spade. Sooner or later, the cat is always let out of the bag and what remains is bad blood. Repeating the pattern over and over again has brought about a sense of distrust and hostility amidst producers and government executives.

The impact of such rotting relations, may the reason be different, was experienced by Egypt, Syria, Sudan and North Korea. This is the whole horrid picture which one might see, all because nobody is willing to be a selfless moderator. “The nation doesn’t want to know”. It knows. What the nation wants are leaders who can sew the torn bits back and let the nation heal. America isn’t the only one in need of a ‘Healer in Chief’. Food is a basic necessity of life, not a political tool.