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Left to stage ‘Rayalaseema Rythu Dharna’ on May 16, 17
The Left parties will organise a two-day agitation in the name of ‘Rayalaseema Rythu Dharna’, demanding release of input subsidy, crop loans rescheduling and other farmers’ issues. While speaking to m
Vijayawada: The Left parties will organise a two-day agitation in the name of ‘Rayalaseema Rythu Dharna’, demanding release of input subsidy, crop loans rescheduling and other farmers’ issues. While speaking to media at CPI state office Dasari Bhavan on Tuesday, CPI state secretary K Ramakrishna and CPM state secretary P Madhu announced that the agitation would commence at Anantapur on May 16.
Ramakrishna alleged that lakhs of farmers migrated to neighbouring states like Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka and started to work as daily wage labour unable to face drought conditions in the district. He said that the state government announced 307 mandals which had short rainfall to be drought-affected. The state government had failed to give minimum support price to tomato, chilli, turmeric and other produces, he alleged.
Moreover, he alleged that input subsidies were not paid properly from past three years. Rayalaseema districts of Anantapur, Chittoor, Kadapa and Kurnool had been facing severe drinking and irrigation water crisis though the state government had implemented rain guns at Anantapur, he commented. Almost all 63 mandals in Anantapur district were drought-hit and even farmers owning 10 acres also migrated to places like Bangalore, Cochin in search of livelihood, he added.
In this connection, Left parties had decided to organise a dharna at Anantapur on May 16 and 17 to build pressure on the state government, he said. Ramakrishna demanded that the state government take action to bring back migrated farmers immediately.
CPM state secretary P Madhu demanded that the state government release Rs 4,394 input subsidy from 2014-15 to 2016-17. Most of the farmers had lost their crops due to shortage of rainfall and lack of minimum support price, he said. However, the bankers had been sending notices to farmers for clearing the loans.
He further said that the state government should reschedule the farmers' crop loans and give support price to agricultural produces. He asked about creation of Price Stabilisation Fund with Rs 5,000 crore and alleged that the state government had completely failed to implement it.Several villages had been facing severe drinking water problems and the state government should supply water by arranging water tanks, he demanded.
He further alleged that Rs 500 crore of wages were not being paid to Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) workers. The Left leader demanded that the state government supply fodder for cattle to open ambali (porridge) centres in drought-hit areas and sanction pensions immediately.
He appealed to farmers to participate in Rayalaseema Rythu Dharna and make it a success. Later, he extended Left parties support to YSRCP president YS Jagan’s protest.Left leader Jalli Wilson, PV Sundara Rama Raju and others participated.
