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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

CPFR seeks PM’s intervention

To lift anti-farmer curbs on MSP cotton procurement rules Mumbai : The Council for Protection of Farmers Rights-Kisan Bharti has demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention to direct the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) to rollback its restrictive cotton procurement rules hitting farmers in the state.   In an appeal to the PM, CPFR-Kisan Bharti President Barr. Vinod Tiwari said that the CCI’s recent move – to cap cotton procurement at only 7 quintals/acre, almost half of the earlier...

CPFR seeks PM’s intervention

To lift anti-farmer curbs on MSP cotton procurement rules Mumbai : The Council for Protection of Farmers Rights-Kisan Bharti has demanded Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention to direct the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) to rollback its restrictive cotton procurement rules hitting farmers in the state.   In an appeal to the PM, CPFR-Kisan Bharti President Barr. Vinod Tiwari said that the CCI’s recent move – to cap cotton procurement at only 7 quintals/acre, almost half of the earlier limit of 13 quintals/acre – has heightened the agony among lakhs of cotton farmers in Maharashtra and adjoining Telangana.   “This bizarre slash in the limit, imposed after yield surveys conducted this Kharif season, has driven farmers to sell nearly 80 percent of the produce to private traders at very low prices. This has added to the already severe distress among farmlands,” Tiwari told  ‘ The Perfect Voice’ .   In view of the cutbacks, farmers have no options but to dispose of their cotton stocks at around Rs 6500/quintal or lower, almost 25 pc below the MSP of Rs 8110/quintal.   The worst-affected are those tillers who produce more than 5 quintas/acre who cannot sell their full yield to CCI owing to the restrictions, and hence offload it to any private buyers at extremely low rates and much below the MSP.   “Worsening the crisis is the CCI’s rigid moisture-content requirements of 8-12 pc which is difficult to maintain. In view of the fog, intermittent rains, drop in winter temperatures, natural moisture levels in the cotton remains high. Despite drying it in the open for days, farmers report moisture levels at 20 pc or higher, and their stocks are rejected outright at CCI procurement centres,” explained Tiwari.   Citing examples, the CPFR-Kisan Bharti said in Yavatmal district alone, 236,752 farmers opted for cotton cultivation across 825,932 acres, yielding around 3.3 million quintals.   However, of this huge quantity, the CCI has procured barley 7,921 quintals and the private traders lapped up some 115,000 quintals at low rates – exposing the gaps between government promises vis-à-vis ground realities.   Farmers rued that the CCI’s impossible regulations are directly pushing them into the trap of private traders, who bargain hard to get the cotton stocks at cheap rates.   The CPFR-Kisan Bharti said that of the 27 procurement centres announced by CCI, barely a handful are operating, leading to long queues, increased transportation costs and logistical chaos for the already harassed farmers.   “Our demand is to increase the procurement to at least 12 quintals/acre, relax the moisture content limits to 22 pc owing to the natural hazards and open more procurement centres to quicken the process,” said Tiwari.   Since the CCI is the nodal agency for MSP procurement, it is expected to protect the farmers’ interest rather than penalizing them for things beyond their control, hence the PM must immediately direct the CCI to do the needful help the farmers before they resort to extreme measures, he urged.

Murky Mandate

Updated: Feb 12

Prime Minister Albin Kurti claims a mandate, but Kosovo’s deep divisions and Western impatience may curb his ambitions.

Albin Kurti

Kosovo’s Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, is no stranger to political turbulence. Having led his left-wing Vetevendosje (Self-Determination) party to victory once again, he proclaims this as a confirmation of his governance. But his celebration may be premature. The vote count remains uncertain due to a malfunctioning electoral system, and while exit polls indicate his party leads with around 40 percent, that is a significant decline from its commanding 50 percent in 2021. More crucially, Kurti lacks a parliamentary majority, leaving Kosovo poised for another round of political brinkmanship.


While a government must be formed, the road ahead is fraught with obstacles. Kosovo’s constitution mandates that 10 out of the 120 parliamentary seats are allocated to the Serb minority, whose representatives refuse to cooperate with Kurti. A further 10 are reserved for other minorities, some of whom have previously sided with Vetevendosje. The opposition, a fractious mix of the centre-right Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK), the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), and the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), has made no secret of its desire to unseat Kurti, with the PDK already expressing optimism about its electoral performance.


Kurti’s political brand is both his strength and his weakness. His populist rhetoric and nationalist policies have strengthened his domestic support but alienated Kosovo’s Western backers. The European Union and the United States, traditionally Kosovo’s staunchest allies, have grown increasingly frustrated with his confrontational stance towards Serbia. Brussels and Washington favour a more pragmatic approach, urging dialogue and diplomatic engagement. Kurti, however, has taken a harder line, insisting on Kosovo’s sovereignty and resisting compromises that could placate Serbia or its international allies, including Russia. This has left Kosovo in a precarious position, reliant on Western support yet unwilling to bend to Western demands.


The opposition parties, sensing an opportunity, have campaigned on a more conciliatory approach. The centre-right LDK has advocated for Kosovo’s NATO membership and the restoration of warmer ties with the United States. The PDK, a party founded by former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) guerrillas, also leans towards Western alignment but remains sceptical of Kurti’s unilateral style of governance. Ramush Haradinaj, leader of the AAK and a former prime minister, has already signalled his willingness to forge a broad opposition coalition to keep Kurti out of power.


Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, nearly a decade after NATO ended Serbia’s crackdown on ethnic Albanians. While the US and most EU countries recognize it, Serbia, Russia, and China do not, thus blocking its EU ambitions and keeping it reliant on NATO’s KFOR peacekeepers.


Kurti’s electoral setback may reflect growing unease among Kosovars over economic stagnation. While his nationalist agenda has mobilised support, his government’s economic policies have faced criticism. Inflation has squeezed household incomes, and job creation remains sluggish. The opposition has seized on these grievances, offering a vision of economic stability and international reintegration that stands in contrast to Kurti’s defiant isolationism.


Kurti has ruled out cooperation with opposition parties, which may leave him scrambling for allies among Kosovo’s smaller ethnic minority groups. But even if he manages to form a government, his ability to enact policy will be constrained by a divided parliament and an increasingly impatient international community. The EU and the US have already expressed concerns about his handling of Kosovo’s Serb minority, and without their backing, his administration risks diplomatic paralysis.


Kosovo’s political deadlock reflects deeper structural issues. The country remains split along ethnic and ideological lines, with its institutions still fragile more than two decades after the war. As long as Kurti continues to prioritise nationalist fervour over pragmatic governance, Kosovo’s Western allies will grow more exasperated. And unless he finds a way to navigate Kosovo’s fractured political landscape, his latest victory may soon turn into a pyrrhic one.

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