Gujarat’s Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Minister Raghavji Patel has reacted on Central Government’s decision to repeal three agriculture laws.
He said that the state government is now also liable to make necessary changes in its APMC Act, amended in September 2020. He stated that the state government should also follow the changes recommended by the Centre. At the same time, he also said that it was merely a personal opinion.
He believes that since the decision is of the Centre, it will not have any immediate effect in Gujarat. To this, APMC secretary Girish Patel said that the state has its own law and they have to follow this.
While, Gujarat AAP leader and former chief of Gujarat Khedut Ekta Samiti, Sagar Rabari, who is in favour of the laws, believes a farmer’s movement is required to force the state government to make any changes to the local laws. He said that if farmers in Gujarat want change, they will have to agitate at the local level and persuade the government. He said that except for some objections of the Congress in Gujarat, there is no objection to the new APMC Act.
He further said that the government should have involved all the stakeholders in the public domain like the UPA government, however, the government brought an ordinance. He said that the farmers were afraid of this law because of the pro-corporate impression of the government.
