Shri Jyotirmoy Bosu : Jute also.
Shri Y. B. Chavan : I agree. So, you will have to find an answer for this contradiction. It looks as if all your experts sitting here in the centre - their main job is how to depress the economic price of the agricultural commodities. This is the main hurdle .... (interruptions) Their philosophy is that unless you do that, the prices will not be under control. The rising price is a major problem You want more growth rate; more growth means more growth in Agricultural sector. This is the economic reality. Immediately you start having more production in agriculture, the prices go down; the agriculturist is depressed; his life is depressed; he is driven into the lowest ladder; pushed back to the last bench. In the economic life, in the reordering of priorities, agriculture goes to the back bench, so to say. We will have to find out an answer to this. Let us sit together and let us find a solution for it. We will have to guarantee the minimum and remunerative prices to the agriculturist. Unless you do that nothing will happen.
... I really wanted to highlight some of the basic aspects of the rural economy. Mere tinkering with the problem will not do; that will not give you the solution. When giving priority to rural areas, if you say, we want to under-estimate or give low priority to industries, well, we are opposed to it. Industries have got very important role to play. Even for improving economic life of people in rural areas we must have industries. Unless you are able to move them away from land and give them some other employment, you can’t do it. How long do you want them to remain there in same old condition in rural area? I think this is what is important.
I am glad I remembered this. You said there is no modern input, input in technology and so on. There is also no input of social equality in the rural areas. You have the problems of landless, you have the problems of the Harijans and so on.
An. Hon. Member : And also the 20 point programme.
Sum. Yashwantrao Chavan : But you don’t agree with it. What is important is not the 20 point programme as such but the content of it. Now, I don’t want to criticise anybody, but I want to say this. When the Demands for the Home Ministry were being discussed and the question of atrocities on Harijans came up, I was expecting some very good response from the Home Minister. The Belchi incidents were mentioned and we wanted the Home Minister to respond to it because Belchi represents the conscience of India. You may say, there were old quarrels among the savarnas etc. but the fact is that harijans have been killed there. We expected the Home Minister to take it as a national problem and respond to it in a positive way so that the country would be inspired, the countryhave its confidence restored. I am making this point because if at all you want to bring about a new life in rural areas, there are these important social aspect of life also.
