Draft law on regulation of fertilisers: Don’t criminalise farmers, ASHA tells Centre

The Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture (ASHA) has opposed some provisions in the Draft Built-in Plant Nourishment Administration Monthly bill, 2022 alleging that they just take absent the rights of States and farmers.

Inquiring the Central authorities not to introduce any provision that could criminalise farmers, it wishes a provision that makes it possible for farmers or other aggrieved functions to look for lawful recourse if they are not pleased with the appellate authority’s resolutions.

ASHA, a community of volunteers that search for to market sustainable farm livelihoods and farmers’ rights in India, wished a system to allow the State governments to regulate the cost, distribution and motion of fertilisers notified by them from time to time.

“It is crucial that bio-fertilisers, bio-stimulants and non-edible deoiled cakes are controlled by Point out governments to fit their possess situations,” it reported.

In its responses to the draft floated by the Union Ministry of Fertilisers, ASHA also felt that farmers must be shielded from any inadvertent criminalisation and penalisation outcomes.

“The restriction with regard to the use of fertilisers should really exclude the farmers and really should not criminalise them in any way,” it stated.

A independent course of action ought to be there for bio-stimulant, organic and natural fertilisers, bio-fertilisers and non-edible de-oiled cakes, which incentivise localised production for localised distribution.

“This should implement to registration for manufacture as properly as for actual sale, stocking and distribution of a specific set of fertilisers. This ought to be squarely below the purview of Point out governments,” it extra.

Referring to the provision that bars persons from producing, selling and internet marketing of fertilisers without “obtaining the acceptable registration”, ASHA felt that the regulation ought to actually incentivise self-help groups, NGOs and pastoralists to generate organic fertilisers, bio-fertilisers, bio-promote and non-edible de-oiled cakes for neighborhood marketplaces.

Compensation

It desired the governing administration to spell out compensation mechanisms for aggrieved farmers (who obtained sub-regular, misbranded or spurious fertilisers) at the taluka-stage in the statute itself.

“Consumer Security Act is not a suited statute the place farmers can hope to get justice, though the total regulation of fertilisers is now getting proposed below this new statute,” it felt.

It would also simply call for a fund to acquire treatment of payment of compensations to farmers.

It discovered fault with the provision that bars civil courts to have jurisdiction in excess of the issues that occur less than this Act, ASHA reported that there should really be a provision to allow for the aggrieved get-togethers who are not satisfied with the appellate authority’s resolution.

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February 26, 2022