The seeds regime should protect farmers’ interests, says Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture
Hyderabad: The Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture (ASHA) has called for a seed regime that would protect the farmer’s right to breed, select, save, use, exchange, distribute and sell seeds. The regime should also encourage agro-diversity to ensure sustainable agriculture and resilience to climate change stresses.
Referring to reports on the proposed amendments to the Seed Bill, which is pending in Parliament, it said states should have the powers to regulate and fix the price of the seed and the royalty component.
“Regulation of the quality of seed will no longer be enough to protect farmers’ interests, unless seed prices are also regulated. The statute should ensure the timely availability of appropriate, adequate and diverse varieties of seeds at affordable rates,” it said.
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