KARIMNAGAR: Middlemen are joining hands with officials and looting the innocent farmers, BJP national general secretary and Karimnagar MP Bandi Sanjay Kumar alleged on Friday.
After facing a lot of hard work, farmers bring their produce to the purchasing centres. But, they are exploited by officials and middlemen by citing restrictions and deducting quintals of food grains,” he said after visiting the purchasing centre at Sankepally village in Vemulawada of Rajanna Sircilla district.
He said the Congress had, in its election manifesto, promised to do away with the middlemen system, stop the practice of deduction of food grains, and end the restrictions raj. “But, why it is not taking any steps when the middlemen are trying to loot the farmers, why is the government not sanctioning compensation to the farmers for the damage to crops due to natural calamities,” he asked.
Without waiving farm loan Rs 2 lakh as was promised by the Congress, the farmers are treated as defaulters. If so, how would banks sanction new loans of Rs 3 lakh without interest, he asked.
“The Congress government boasted that it would start purchasing centres across the state, but what is the use? Even after 12 days of opening of these purchasing centres, the officials are not purchasing the food grains.”
“In Karimnagar district, the situation is worse. Officials did not procure even a single food grain till date. The climate is changing and there are clouds in the sky. If it rains, the loss to farmers will be huge, and who will be responsible for this,” he asked.
Bandi Sanjay said, “The Congress party will have loads of money to be sent to the high command and to its candidates but the government will not have any money to give the promised Rs 500 bonus for every quintal of foodgrains purchased from the farmers.”
The government must purchase the food grains immediately by paying minimum support price (MSP) to farmers without any restrictions and without deducting the food grains. By suspending the middlemen system, the government must give the Rs 500 bonus for every quintal, he demanded.
Giving a counter to the Transport minister Ponnam Prabhakar, Bandi Sanjay alleged that when he was trying to highlight the issues and problems of the farmers, the transport minister was diverting the subject and making corruption allegations against him.
He said, “When K Chandrasekhar Rao indulged in corruption, the Congress party leaders were silent. When KCR uses filthy language against the CM, they will not condemn it strongly, but when he brings the people’s issues to their notice, all the Congress party leaders start attacking him.”
