Modi government harming farmers' interests: Harish Rao

Karimnagar: The TRS government is the only government in the country that has been protecting the interests of farmers, stated Finance Minister T Harish Rao.

He urged the farmers to think as to which party was protecting their interests, whether it was the TRS or the BJP. Before the TRS came to power in 2014, the situation of the farmers was worst as they had faced issues like burnt transformers and irrigation motors, he reminded.

Speaking at a farmers' meeting in Huzurabad on Monday, the Minister said in the past farmers used to wait for days for power supply. Now the TRS government has been supplying round-the-clock free power to agriculture sector, he stated.

He also reminded that farmers in the past had to pay money if they want water connection or pattadar pass book. But now, Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao has come up with several schemes to brighten up the farmer's lives. Schemes like Rythu Bandhu, Rythu Bima were not implemented anywhere in the country, he pointed out.

The Minister informed that KCR had constructed Rythu Vedikalu to unite farmers and now there is no shortage of seeds, fertilisers and no need to make rounds to banks for loans. There is a drastic development in the State where the situation changed from waiting for water to water flowing all the time in the canals due to Kaleswaram project, he noted.

Harish Rao accused the BJP government at the Centre of trying to harm the interests of farmers by closing down existing agriculture markets, by installing meters to irrigation pump sets. The prices of fertiliser and diesel were increased and due to inflated diesel rates, cultivation expenditure per acre was raised to Rs 6,000, he stated.

"The BJP government at the Centre is blocking access to farmers to Delhi with iron fences as they were protesting against the farm laws. Why BJP leader Eatala Rajender is not talking about this," Minister Harish Rao wondered.