CM meets protesting Tamil Nadu farmers in Delhi

Chennai: As the farmers' protest demanding loan waiver and other demands entered its 41st day in New Delhi Sunday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palanisami met the agitating ryots and promised to take up all their demands with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Mr Palanisami, who arrived in New Delhi on Saturday night to attend the NITI Ayog conference, drove to Jantar Mantar from the Tamil Nadu House on Sunday morning and spent about 30 minutes with the farmers who had taken to extreme steps of demonstrativeness by eating rats and drinking urine to highlight the worst ever drought condition being faced by them in the state.

Several political leaders, including Congress' Rahul Gandhi and DMK's MK Stalin, had visited the farmers in the past 40 days and extended support to them. The ruling AIADMK's Lok Sabha MP M Thambidurai had taken up their plight inside Parliament along with the DMK's Tiruchi Siva.

Addressing the farmers, Mr Palanisami said the Tamil Nadu Government demanded '39,565 crore to ward off the agrarian crisis stemming from the worst drought in 140 years, but the Union Government sanctioned only Rs 2,247 crore.

"Relief amounts for farmers are being directly transferred into their bank accounts and the state government is disbursing crop loan to farmers. Besides, to save water the state government had launched a scheme under which '100 crore was released to desilt 1,519 lakhs across the state," Mr Palanisami said.

The farmers are demanding Rs. 40,000-crore drought relief package, farm loan waiver and setting up of the Cauvery Management Board. "I listened patiently to the demands of the farmers and I assured them that all their demands will be taken to the notice of the Prime Minister," the Chief Minister said, appealing to the farmers' to call off their strike.