Punjab Assembly Challenges Centre's New Agricultural Marketing Policy

The Punjab Assembly passed a resolution opposing the Centre's draft National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing, stating it aims to reintroduce repealed farm laws. The resolution insists agricultural policy should remain a state matter, urging Punjab to protect its Agricultural Produce Market Committee system.

The Punjab Assembly has taken a firm stand against the Centre's recent draft National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing, signaling potential friction between state and federal powers in agricultural policy. The resolution strongly criticizes the draft as another attempt to reintroduce the contentious farm laws repealed by the Union in 2021.

Pushed by Punjab's Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khuddian, the resolution received backing on the assembly's final session day, with the document being seen as impinging upon state rights. The House reiterated the idea of agriculture being a state subject, advocating for region-specific marketing policies to protect existing market committees.

This resolution, supported by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, also denounces the perceived corporatization of politics by the Centre and their withholding of Punjab’s rural development fund as methods to destabilize the state. The Opposition also called for unity against such central government policies, with suggestions of collective action for Punjab’s cause.