Parliament passes Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021

On November 29, 2021, Indian Parliament passed the Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 during first day of the winter session.

Key Points

• The three farm laws of centre have been repealed by Lok Sabha as well as Rajya Sabha in the fastest repeal in recent years, following a year-long protests by farmers.
• Farm Laws Repeal Bill 2021 was tabled by Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar in Rajya Sabha.

Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021

• The Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 was passed with the aim of repealing the three farm laws namely,

1. Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020
2. Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020
3. Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

• The bill also seeks to amend the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.
• It was introduced and passed after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on November 19, to repeal the three laws in light if ongoing farmers’ protests against these laws.

Sections in the Bill

The six-page Bill comprises of only three sections. First section of the bill defines the title of the Act, that is ‘Farm Laws Repeal Act, 2021’. Second section of the bill comprises of the provisions to repeal three farm laws while the third section mentions about removing sub-section (1A) from section 3 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955.

Sub-section 1A of 3 of the Essential Commodities Act

Central government had inserted sub-section (1A) in section 3 of the Essential Commodity Act, 1955. This provision empowers the government to control production, supply and distribution, etc of essential commodities. It provides a mechanism to regulate supply of foodstuffs like pulses, cereals, potato, onions, oils and edible oilseeds under “extraordinary circumstances” like famine, war, extraordinary price rise and natural calamity.

Month: Current Affairs - November, 2021