Siliguri: Hitting out at the Centre over the contentious farm laws, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Tuesday that this legislation would devastate the farmers of the country and help the hoarders.
Addressing an administrative meeting at branch secretariat’ Uttar Kanya’ here, Banerjee said she would speak to officials of the agricultural department and take steps to protect the interest of the farmers.
“The farm laws will devastate the farmers of the country. It will only help the hoarders. We will soon convene a meeting of officials to see what can be done to protect the interest of the farmers,” she said.
Banerjee also slammed the Centre’s decision to remove cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oils, onion and potatoes from the list of essential commodities as “anti-people and disastrous”.
The opposition parties, including Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress, have been protesting three farm sector laws enacted by the Narendra Modi government, alleging these are “anti- farmer measures” and will “destroy” the agriculture sector.
The government has, however, asserted that the new laws would free farmers from the clutches of middleman and allow them to sell their produce anywhere they want at a remunerative price.
Reacting to Banerjee’s comments, the state BJP accused her party of misleading the farmers.
“The TMC is trying to mislead the farmers of the state. These laws will enable farmers to get a better price.
The TMC government itself has passed a law in 2014, by which it has allowed private players in the farm sector,” BJP state president Dilip Ghosh said.