BJP demands all-party meeting on drought

Hyderabad: BJP leaders on Tuesday demanded the government to supply drinking water to all the towns and villages by tankers wherever people are facing acute water shortage, distribute free seeds to farmers and declare 435 mandals as drought-affected.

In a memorandum submitted to Chief Secretary S K Joshi, a delegation of BJP leaders wanted the govern to convene an all-party meeting to discuss the drought conditions prevailing in the State.

They said that there is scarcity of water in the State the deficit rainfall. Out of 584 mandals, 435 mandals are drought-affected and the districts like Khammam, Nalgonda, and Suryapet are the most affected. Cultivation has not even reached 60 per cent out of 40 lakh acres in this season.

The BJP leaders alleged that the government did not take proper steps to contain the situation and had not planned for alternative arrangements.

If this situation continues for few more days there will be no yield of crops and the farmers will be in a grave situation, the BJP leaders said.

They demanded that the Agriculture and Revenue departments should help the farmers with proper coordination. The government should immediately waive off Rs one lakh loan of farmers as announced earlier by KCR and sanction new loans to all farmers.

They also added that the Prime Minister Fasal Bima Scheme should be implemented in the State so that those farmers who have not started harvesting will also get benefit with this scheme.

For the farmers who are not eligible in Fasal Bima Scheme, the government should introduce input subsidy scheme so as to protect the farmers.

The BJP leaders wanted the government to furnish details of all eligible farmers to the Central government to implement the Kisan Samman Nidhi Scheme and pattadar passbooks should be given to all the remaining 10 lakhs farmers.

BJP leaders Bandaru Dattatreya, DK Aruna, T Raja Singh, G Premender Reddy, S Venkateshwar Rao, Chintala Ramachandra Reddy and others were also present.