Telangana: Kamareddy farmers defy prohibitory orders, stage dharna

Kamareddy: Despite police prohibitory orders in the district, hundreds of farmers rallied in front of the Kamareddy municipal office on Wednesday to protest the draft master plan for the proposed industrial zone, chanting slogans against Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and the BRS government and demanding that the master plan be scrapped.

Farmers from merged villages of the municipality took part in the agitation, which was spearheaded by the Joint Action Committee (JAC), even as police forces were deployed in large numbers near the Kamareddy municipal office.

The gates of the municipal office were closed and access to the building was restricted. Prohibitory orders banning the gathering of people were imposed in Kamareddy, a day ahead of the farmers' planned dharna at the municipal office.

Farmers, draped in green kanduvas, squatted in front of the municipal office. A large number of women farmers too participated in the dharna.  Angry farmers raised anti-CM-BRS slogans and chanted 'Jai Jawan Jai Kisan,' demanding that the draft master plan for the industrial zone be cancelled immediately.

Farmers stated that they were forced to hold agitations on the streets due to the state government's reluctance to rethink its decision to build an industrial zone in their farmlands.

"We would have worked in farm fields had we not come forth for agitation to defend our agricultural lands," they added. They stated that no government could survive by causing hardships to farmers, and that Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao will suffer the same fate as former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, who was defeated after adopting anti-farmer policies. On the final day for submitting objections, Wednesday, roughly 2,313 were lodged against the proposed master plan.