The revival of farmer protests, led by a breakaway faction of the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), demands urgent introspection. Chief among their demands is a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP) on all 23 crops under the purview of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP). While support for farmers is vital, this demand is impractical, economically unsustainable, and detrimental to the nation’s progress. Fulfilling this demand would require government procurement of crops worth an estimated ₹10 trillion annually. This would distort market dynamics, discourage private participation, and strain fiscal resources. India’s MSP system already supports rice, wheat, and select pulses, primarily for food security and buffer stock purposes. Expanding it to all crops would cripple public finances and undermine free-market mechanisms critical to economic growth. Agriculture Minister Shivraj Chouhan recently pointed out that the government also provides MSP for certain unlisted crops, benefiting the farming community. However, he reminded Parliament that it was the Congress-led government that declared the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations unfeasible.
Adding to the challenge, the protests are burdened with additional demands such as debt waivers, pensions for farmers and laborers, and withdrawal from World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements—none of which hold merit in the current economic context. Demands like withdrawing from WTO betray a lack of understanding of global trade dynamics and their importance to India’s growth trajectory. The protests’ optics raise further questions. While the majority of India’s agricultural community seems content with existing norms, a small group from Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh dominates these agitations. Their methods—threats of marches, highway blockades, and economic disruption—alienate public sympathy and suggest hidden motives. Reports of external funding and organized support only deepen suspicions of agendas aimed at derailing India’s progress. It is worth recalling that the government repealed the contentious farm laws in 2021 after prolonged protests. These laws, aimed at modernizing agriculture through contract farming and liberalized trade, were withdrawn despite their transformative potential. Yet, the same factions now resurface with demands that appear more about political leverage than genuine grievances. India is poised to become the world’s fourth-largest economy, with a $5 trillion target by 2028. Disruptions like these hinder progress. Farmers’ concerns must be addressed, but holding the nation hostage with unrealistic demands is counterproductive. The judiciary and government must act decisively. Peaceful protests are a democratic right, but disruptive tactics that harm economic activity and public welfare require strict legal intervention. Constructive engagement, not divisive and unsustainable demands, is the way forward. The nation cannot be held ransom by a few at the expense of many. Reason must prevail.