Farmers lose battle over quality of seeds

NEW DELHI: A group of Haryana farmers lost their crops and also a legal battle at the Supreme Court for compensation for having undergone enormous agony and loss due to suspected substandard quality of wheat seeds supplied by state''s seeds development corporation.
The judgment assumes significance as a vulnerable section of the society resorted to legal remedy as it realised that being growers they are also "consumers" under the Consumer Protection Act.
During the five-long years of litigation, Sadhu and some other farmers having their holdings in village Dudhwa in Kaithal district approached the consumer redressal forum, each held the corporation liable to pay compensation to them.
Aggrieved by the decree to pay compensation to harassed farmers, the Corporation moved the Supreme Court challenging farmers'' claim on various grounds including they were not "consumers" as they had bought wheat from wholesale market and used it for commercial purposes.
It also said that poor germination of seeds as complained by the farmers could be due to a variety of reasons. In this context, the Corporation relied on an expert committee report that denied the allegation that quality of seeds was responsible for no-crop situation for farmers.
"It may be concluded that variation in the condition of the crop may not be attributed to the quality of seed by it may be due to other factors including water quality,long dry spell, salt accumulation in surface layer, sowing methodology, moisture content at the sowing time and soil''s physical condition", the farm experts said.
A Bench of Justices Ruma Pal and C K Thakker agreed with the expert panel findings on why the farmers lost their crops. Allowing the corporation''s appeal, the Bench, which had earlier directed it to deposit 50 per cent of the principle amount of compensation in fixed deposit, revoked its order.
The Bench ordered the amount to be refunded to the Corporation.