Centre lists bill to repeal farm laws in legislative agenda for Winter Session of Parliament

New Delhi: The government has listed a bill to repeal three farm laws in its agenda for the winter session of Parliament beginning November 29. The decision to repeal the three farm laws was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Gurpurab.

The Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 seeks to repeal the Farmers` Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance, Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The government also listed a new bill for the upcoming Winter Session of Parliament that seeks to ban all private cryptocurrencies in the country, while allowing an official digital currency to be issued by the Reserve Bank of India.

This bill on cryptocurrencies is among 26 bills listed for the session. These also include a bill to repeal the three farm laws, a proposal for which is to be discussed by the Union Cabinet on Wednesday.

The Union Cabinet is likely to take up the withdrawal of the three farm laws for approval on Wednesday (November 24), government sources said. The winter session of the Parliament is scheduled to start from November 29 and conclude on December 23.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on November 19 announced the repealing of the three Central farm laws. The Prime Minister had also announced that the government will constitute a committee to work on a new framework for Minimum Support Price (MSP).

Thousands of farmers have been protesting against the government`s three farm laws since the Centre had passed the laws in 2020. The three farm laws are - The Farmers` Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act provides for setting up a mechanism allowing the farmers to sell their farm produces outside the Agriculture Produce Market Committees (APMCs). 

Any licence-holder trader can buy the produce from the farmers at mutually agreed prices. This trade of farm produces will be free of mandi tax imposed by the state governments.

The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act allows farmers to do contract farming and market their produces freely. The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act is an amendment to the existing Essential Commodities Act.