CM Jagan Mohan should visit drought affected villages: Gidugu Rudraraju

Visakhapatnam: Several mandals were hit by drought in Andhra Pradesh due to deficit Southwest Monsoons and a weak Northeast Monsoon, said Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Gidugu Rudraraju, who along with former PCC chief N. Raghuveera Reddy took out a rally in Vizianagaram, on Thursday.

“Though, 420 mandals are hit by drought, the government declared only 103 mandals as drought-hit,’’ said the PCC president.

He said Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy should leave his office and visit the villages to understand the situation prevailing in various parts of the state due to the drought.

Rudraraju demanded Rs 50,000 per acre to the affected farmers and Rs 25 lakh to the kin of those farmers who died by suicide. He also suggested launching of MNREGA works in the villages to mitigate the situation and prevent people from migrating to other places for work.

Former PCC president N. Raghuveera Reddy said that on average six farmers were dying by suicide in the country. The suicides among the farmers have increased during the last 10 years under the NDA regime.

“The Congress never neglected the interests of the farmers,’’ Raghuveera Reddy said. Though not in power, the Congress has been highlighting the plight of the farmers.

Stating that if the Congress comes to power in the state in the next elections, the party will provide minimum support price (MSP) to the farmers by paying Rs 2,500 per quintal for paddy procurement.

The party will also complete all the pending irrigation projects in the state and implement Swaminathan’s recommendations, he added.

The veteran Congress leader also appealed to the farmers not to end their lives by suicide.