Hyderabad, May 25 (IANS) Bharat Rashtra Samithi’s (BRS) Deputy Leader in Telangana Assembly, T. Harish Rao, on Monday warned that if paddy procurement is not expedited within two days, he will lead a protest by thousands of farmers.
The former minister visited the paddy procurement centre in Ensanpally village, Siddipet Urban Mandal, and personally enquired about the hardships faced by farmers who have been waiting for days on end at the drying floors.
Later, speaking to the media, he criticised the state government for its “failure” regarding paddy procurement.
He alleged that the Congress government has absolutely no concern or regard for farmers.
“Having failed to ensure the supply of urea and electricity, and to disburse ‘Rythu Bandhu,’ this government has now completely failed even in the task of procuring the paddy that farmers toiled hard to cultivate throughout the season. Farmers have never faced such distress and hardship — not only during KCR’s (BRS chief K. Chandrasekhar Rao) tenure as Chief Minister, but also during the era of the united Andhra Pradesh under Chief Ministers like YSR, Roshaiah, and Kiran Kumar Reddy,” he said.
Harish Rao said that while the state is yielding a harvest of 1.40 crore tonnes, Civil Supplies Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy, who until now promised to procure 90 lakh tonnes of paddy, is now stating that they will purchase only 70 lakh tonnes.
“Does this mean that farmers are expected to sell the remaining 70 lakh tonnes to middlemen and incur heavy losses?” he asked.
The BRS leader said that, unable to manage the procurement of paddy themselves, the Congress government are shifting the blame onto the Central government. He recalled that in the past, when the Centre refused to procure, then KCR, along with his ministers and MLAs, staged a protest in Delhi and compelled the Central government to yield.
“Even when the Centre declined to purchase, KCR personally undertook the procurement process to ensure that farmers did not suffer any losses. If you are capable, go to Delhi and fight for the cause; do not leave the farmers in the lurch,” he told Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy.
He remarked that sitting comfortably in their air-conditioned rooms, CM Revanth Reddy and Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy are merely indulging in rhetoric.
He claimed that rice millers are currently blackmailing farmers, refusing to unload their produce at the mills unless each bag contains a minimum of 43 kg. As a result of this, farmers are incurring a loss of 150 kilograms per acre. When this issue was brought to the attention of the official concerned, he told farmers to resolve the matter directly with the millers.
“Not a single minister has visited the procurement centres. Even though farmers are staging road blockades in Mittapalli, Nanganur, and Chinnakodur, this government shows absolutely no compassion,” Harish Rao said.
He stated that despite the arrival of the Rohini Karte — the peak summer season– procurement operations have not commenced, and paddy stocks are left languishing in the drying yards.
“Only one-third of the paddy has been procured; the remaining two-thirds still lie in the open. In Kolcharam, Medak district, a farmer passed away right atop his paddy heap, which was rotting due to the rains,” he said.
The former minister claimed that across the state, 10 to 12 farmers have already lost their lives within these very drying yards.
–IANS
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