NEW DELHI: In the run-up to the Assembly polls in Haryana and J&K, Home Minister Amit Shah has raised pitch for the recent pro-farmer policies of the Modi government, saying the government has facilitated increasing the farm exports enabling the farmers to get the maximum price for their produce.At another event marking Hindi Diwas, Shah said that Hindi’s role is to support and enhance local languages, rather than compete with them. The Central government is working to promote Hindi in various sectors, including education, technical fields, and the judiciary. He noted that Hindi made a big contribution in the freedom movement.Shah highlighted three major policy decisions taken by the Modi government to enhance farmers’ income. He cited the removal of the Minimum Export Price (MEP) on onions and a reduction in export duty from 40% to 20% as the first decision.The second government step, Shah said, is to help onion-producing farmers by allowing them to access global markets more competitively.The third major decision involved raising import duties on various edible oils. This adjustment aims to protect Indian soybean farmers by making imported oils more expensive, thus encouraging domestic production and potentially raising prices for local farmers’ crops.These moves are seen to help BJP’s position poll-bound Haryana (voting is on October 5), J&K (voting in three phases beginning September 18, Maharashtra, where the polling schedule is expected to be announced anytime soon. In the first two states, the BJP’s showing was much less than the party’s expectations in the recent parliamentary polls. In J&K too, farmers’ vote can be decisive.At the Akhil Bhartiya Rajbhasha Sammelan on Hindi Diwas, Shah said all foredoom fighters and those who shaped the Constitution understood the significance of Hindi in uniting the country. “That’s why they all accorded the status of official language to Hindi,” he said.BANGLADESH HAILS INDIA’S ONION EXPORT DUTY CUTBangladesh is celebrating India’s decision to slash export duties on onion as the country believes this will translate into low prices for them and also lead to resumption of onion imports into their country by India after more than four months. “We are optimistic that this will lead to a reduction in prices in the local markets across Bangladesh as we are reeling under inflation,” said a source in Dhaka. Indian onions will find their way after a gap of over four months. They were banned after a shortage of the kitchen staple. “It’s possible that Bangladesh would consider exporting Hilsa during the puja,” said the source. Onion importers in Bangladesh had turned to countries such as Egypt and Pakistan, which kept the cost high.
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