Coming straight to the nub of the matter, let me begin by first and foremost pointing out that at a time when several states and areas are reeling very acutely under severe drought, President Pranab Mukherjee has very rightly recommended consideration of a private member’s bill that entails for various protective measures for farmers of arid, desert and drought prone areas and a welfare fund with an initial corpus of Rs 10,000 crore. It merits no reiteration that farmers are witnessing many suicides due to total scarcity of water, failure of crops and a host of other reasons. This is exactly what necessitates the creation of a farmers fund which must be done at the earliest.

While craving for the exclusive indulgence of my esteemed readers, I would seek their whole attention in telling them that it is significant to note here that the Bill was moved by Rajya Sabha member and senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel. Be it noted, The Farmers of Arid and Desert Areas (Welfare and Other Special Provisions) Bill, 2014 was introduced by Ahmed Patel in Rajya Sabha in December 2014. It is a no brainer that farmers will benefit maximum if this Bill is passed at the earliest.

The Bill, if enacted, will involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India. It is imperative to point out here that the Financial Memorandum of the Bill explicitly states that, “It is estimated a sum of Rs 20,000 crore may be involved as recurring expenditure per annum. A non-recurring expenditure of Rs 5,000 crore may also be involved from the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI). A non-recurring expenditure of Rs 5,000 crore may also be involved from the CFI”.

Truth be told, under the Parliamentary rules and procedures, a Bill which, if converted into a law and brought into operation would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India, cannot be passed by Parliament unless the President has recommended to that House its consideration. In a letter to the Rajya Sabha Secretary General a few days back, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh has stated that the President, having been informed about the subject matter of the particular Private Member’s Bill has recommended its consideration under Article 117(3) of the Constitution by the Rajya Sabha. This must be taken most seriously because none other than President has recommended a private member Bill titled Ahmed Patel’s Bill for farmers fund who are reeling in poverty, drought weather conditions etc and therefore direly need help from Centre in the form of farmers fund as envisaged in the Bill!

It would be pertinent to mention here for my esteemed readers exclusive benefit that the Upper House has listed the Bill for consideration, which seeks to provide for the establishment of welfare fund for farmers of arid and desert areas with initial corpus of Rs 10,000 crore to be provided by the Central Government. What cannot be lost sight of is that Clause 6 of the Bill makes it mandatory for the Centre to provide requisite funds to the States concerned and this is truly laudable. It must also be noted here that Clause 5 stipulates for certain welfare measures to be undertaken by appropriate Governments.

In the statement of objects and reasons of the Bill, Ahmed Patel has noted that Gujarat, in particular Saurashtra and Kutch regions, and major parts of Rajasthan are having arid and desert areas, which face extreme heat in summer and extreme cold in winter and mostly rainfall is scanty and deficient there. He observed that, “Similarly , Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha etc, are frequently affected by unprecedented drought conditions and desert is spreading in many such areas”. Needless to say, what Patel has pointed out is quite significant and there is thus a compelling need to seriously deliberate over what he has pointed out.

Let me hasten to add here that Patel also insisted that a welfare fund should be set up for the farmers of arid and desert areas as they face frequent drought conditions in these regions and generally lose their crops leading to indebtedness and distress among them. The Bill seeks to provide for “protective measures and special facilities for the farmers of arid, desert and drought prone areas, who are often affected by natural calamities causing loss of crops, livestock, making them vulnerable to indebtedness, disease and physical infirmities, exploitation of money lenders”. It must be initiated and enacted at the earliest as it brooks no delay!

Financial Bills, other than Money Bills, are covered under Article 117. Those which, if enacted, and brought into operation, would involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India came under Clause (3) of Article 117. Such a Bill may be introduced in either House and it does not require the recommendation of the President for its introduction. It cannot, however, be passed by either House unless the President has recommended to that House the consideration thereof.

Eminent Constitutional expert and former Lok Sabha Secretary General Subhash C Kashyap says very categorically that, “While the Presidential recommendation for private members’ Bill that involve expenditure from the Consolidated Fund of India is necessary, such Bills, if passed by both the Houses, might still not become law if the President withholds his assent to the Bill”. He also pointed out that, “To put it in layman’s language, the recommendation is required lest the Bill becomes a law and the government subsequently finds that it does not have the money to be spent from the Consolidated Fund of India”. To put things in perspective, it is most satisfying to note here that President Pranab Mukherjee has himself recommended consideration of a private member’s Bill that seeks to create a welfare fund for farmers of arid, desert and drought-prone region! Let’s hope it gets enacted at the earliest without any further delay so that farmers can avail of farmers fund at the earliest!

-Sanjeev Sirohi,

Advocate,