Hyderabad, April 13: Bharatiya Janata Party Telangana State executive committee member Gudur Narayana Reddy on Saturday demanded the state government to pay Rs 15,000 per acre as compensation to the farmers who suffered crop losses in the Rabi season.
In a media statement, he wanted the state government to take the permission of the Election Commission of India to announce the compensation and to disburse the same by the end of this month itself.
Due to the apathy of the state government, the victim farmers are losing hope and some have committed suicides. Reportedly as many as 200 farmers have committed suicides in the past four months.
Mr Reddy stated that about 20 per cent of the crops, which amounts to about 12 lakh acres, sown in Rabi season have gone dry due to depletion in ground water levels and non-availability of water in the main reservoirs. Many paddy fields have been left for grazing of the cattle.
He said that in the Rabi season farmers have cultivated crops in about 65 lakh acres in the state. However, 20 per cent of them have gone dry due to non-availability of water. Crops even in the command area have gone dry leaving the farmers in utter despair.
He said that apart from drought, untimely rains and hailstorms have caused crop damages on a large scale in several districts of the state. Particularly orchards were damaged in last month. It is estimated that orchards have suffered damages in about 50,000 acres.
He alleged that instead of coming to the rescue of the farmers whose crops were damaged the ruling Congress and opposition BRS are trading barbs against each other on the compensation issue.
He criticised that even one minister did not visit the dried up paddy fields in the state and tried to understand the agony of the victim farmers. Though the state government has stated that enumeration of crop damages would be taken up, it seems the ruling party was busy in election campaign than speeding up the process.
“If the state government takes up enumeration on war footing and prepares a report, it could be sent to the Central Government and funds could be sought. The Centre would not go back to come to the rescue of the distressed farmers. However, the enumeration is yet to take off,” he said.
The BJP leader said that even though there was scant rainfall in the state in last monsoon season the previous BRS government did not take any measures to face the drought during the Rabi season.
Mr Reddy criticised that the irrigation projects being constructed by the BRS government in the past 10 years have gone defunct and there is no possibility even to lift one TMC of water from much touted Kaleswaram Lift Irrigation project.Take EC permission and pay compensation to farmers: demands Gudur
