India farmers struggle despite state schemes
West Bengal has standardised amount of rice it buys from farms to help producers, but some say it does not help enough.
Published On 11 Apr 2014
Farmers in the Indian state of West Bengal are struggling to stay afloat despite government procurement schemes to help them and boost national food supplies.
The government sets prices at $22 for every 100kg of rice and half of the rice procured through the scheme is provided at subsidised rates for the poor. However, that leaves some farmers with excess stock and forces them to sell to middlemen at lower prices.
The government treads a fine line between feeding those in poverty and making sure the farmers who produce crops get a fair deal.
Al Jazeera’s Nidhi Dutt reports from West Bengal.
Source: Al Jazeera