Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday appealed to the agitating farmers to end their protest and have a discussion on the farm laws. He announced that the minimum support price for the farm produce will continue. Thousands of farmers have been protesting against the new farm laws for over two months on the borders of Delhi.

"Minimum support price (MSP) based agri procurement will continue and so will PDS," Modi said in the Rajya Sabha.

Modi said that the government is working for the small farmers. "Loan waiver does not benefit small farmers as they don't have bank accounts or take loans. Rs 90,000 crore of claims cleared under crop insurance; amount bigger than loan waiver. Rs 1.15 lakh crore paid into the account of farmers under PM Kisan Samman Nidhi," Modi said.

He also appealed to not spread the misinformation and said former Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar and the Congress party had favoured agri-reforms. He quoted his predecessor Manmohan Singh on the need to remove hurdles in farmers selling produce freely.

While replying to the Motion of Thanks on the President’s address, Modi said, "The President's address to the joint sitting of Parliament was of hope and the way forward during these challenging times." Calling India a land of opportunities, Modi said the country cannot let go of opportunities that have come during challenging times.

Focussing on the country's efforts to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, Modi said that the world has appreciated India's efforts in saving humanity and the credit goes to the country. "World had apprehensions about how India would handle pandemic; lakhs would die they had apprehended. India emerged as pharmacy of the world during the pandemic, delivered medicines to 150 countries," Modi said. India exported COVID-19 vaccines Covishield and Covaxin to Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Mauritius and many other countries for free as a "friendly gesture".

The Modi government also came under criticism over the imposition of lockdown and rising death toll. "Criticism is fine but doesn't indulge in acts that can break the confidence of the country; corona warriors should be respected."

Hitting out at the Opposition for questioning the democracy, Modi said, "India's democracy is not a western institution, it is a human institution. India is a mother of democracy; governance and polity is democratic." He quoted Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and said India's nationalism is neither narrow, self-centered nor aggressive.

First Published:Feb 8, 2021 11:33 AM IST