Dump retail FDI, emulate Amul to help farmers: V K Singh
04 Dec 2012
The claims about foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand retail sector generating income and employment for India's farmers are against facts, former Army chief V K Singh said today.
Singh also urged the government to try replicating the Amul model if it is genuinely interested in improving the lot of the farmers.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a farmers' agitation in New Delhi, the former Army chief said FDI in multi-brand retail will in no way help farmers and will only help multinational to reap huge profits.
He cited the example of PepsiCo. When PepsiCo came to India also, it was said that it would help farmers but that was never the case, he pointed out.
He said India should pursue its own success stories like Amul to bring about an economic revolution in the country rather than transplant western models.
"In India, we have an excellent model in terms of Amul to empower farmers. We can bring about the same change what people are trying to bring through FDI by making suitable modifications to the Amul model," he said.
On the other hand, Singh said Indian farmers would not benefit because the multi-brand retailers will import cheap items from other countries and not procure them from within.
