TRS-BJP cheating farmers with ‘dramas’ on paddy procurement, allege Manthani Congress legislator
K M Dayashankar
PEDDAPALLI: Former Minister and Manthani legislator D Sridhar Babu has alleged that the ruling TRS and BJP, which formed a secret pact, were cheating the gullible farmers of the Telangana state by playing ‘dramas’ on the procurement of the paddy produce.
Mr Sridhar Babu visited the paddy procurement centre in Khanapur village of Manthani mandal on Sunday as part of the party call. On this occasion, he interacted with the farmers about the procurement of paddy and inspected the damaged paddy produce following the unseasonal rains.
Speaking on the occasion, he charged that the rice millers were deducting 5 to 10 kgs of paddy per quintal during the procurement in the name of wastage and moisture content and causing severe loss to the farming community. He also ridiculed the TRS government for forcing the farmers to approach the rice millers for the payment after the procurement of their hard-earned produce.
Stating that Congress had provided payments to the farmers immediately after procurement without any consent of the millers, he alleged that the government negligence and inefficiency had forced the farmers to live on the mercy of the rice millers for getting their payments.
Demanding that the government should procure the damaged paddy without taking into consideration the moisture content, he said that the Congress party would support the farmers and force the government till the procurement of paddy was completed by all the farmers.
He ridiculed the TRS leaders’ claims that they were for the cause of the farmers and opposed the three controversial farm bills bought by the Union government. Reminding that the Congress had demanded the TRS government to pass a resolution in the Assembly against the farm bills, he said that the TRS government, instead, had suspended the Congress leaders who demanded resolution against the farm bills.
It is not fair to instruct the farmers to stop cultivating the paddy on the pretext of the Union government not procuring it, he said and added that the government should announce a comprehensive policy on alternate crops, its procurement, MSP etc. He said that the farmers of the Telangana state would also teach a fitting lesson to the TRS government for deceiving them.
