BJP knocks on Governor's door

​Hyderabad: Telangana BJP leaders sought the intervention of Governor E S L Narasimhan to ensure extending help to the farmers who suffered crop loss on account of recently untimely heavy rains and hail-stone storms as well as effective implementation of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bhima Scheme (PMFBS) and distribution of Soil Health Cards to the farmers in the State.

Senior BJP leader and former Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya, along with MLAs G Kishna Reddy, C Ramachandra Reddy and MLC N Ramachandra Rao, met the governor at Raj Bhavan and submitted a memorandum here on Monday.

In their memorandum, the BJP leaders said due to unseasonal rains and hailstorms crops in Nalgonda, Khammam, Vikarabad, Kamareddy, Medhcal, Suryapet, Siddipet, Karimnagar, Warangal, Peddapally and Mahbubnagar and other districts suffered major damages.

They complained that the official machinery in the Agriculture department is otherwise busy, have so far not visited the fields to assess the crop loss on the ground. Any loss of time in taking up this exercise would not help in assessing the actual loss and damage that occurred. Hence, they requested Narasimhan to direct the official concerned to take up the crop loss assessment exercise. Otherwise, the farmers would stand to incur an irreparable loss in getting due compensation either from the government or otherwise from the insurance companies, they said.

The BJP leaders requested the Governor to advise the government to pay Rs 25, 000 per acre of paddy loss, Rs 20, 000 per acre loss of maize, Rs 20, 000 per acre for loss of vegetables and Rs 35, 000 per acre loss of mango crop to those farmers who lost the crops in the above districts and also elsewhere in the State.

Besides, they highlighted how the State is not extending the benefits of the PMFBS to the farmers in the State. Had the scheme is extended by creating awareness about the scheme among the farmers of the crop loss of this magnitude, could have been very well averted, they said.

Similarly, they also asked the Governor to direct the State government to make arrangements for issue of Soil Health Cards before the issue of new Revenue pass books as planned by the State government.

That apart, the Bharatiya Janata Kisan Morcha also submitted to Narasimhan that the officials of the Insurance Companies from whom the Fasal Bhima Insurance has been taken for the crops, are turning a deaf ear towards calls made to them for reporting the crop damage nor the toll-free numbers furnished by them are active to call and consult the officials for a field visit in case of any damage or loss to the insured crop. As the State government is the main intermediary, in this case, necessary instructions to the State government to talk to the insurance companies concerned to discharge their bounden duty properly, they said.