Always innocents farmers becomes an easy target by political parties to make the farmer a pawn in the game of politics. And selfish politicians use this opportunity to exploit the innocence of ‘Anna daata’.
The issue of paddy procurement has taken a political turn in Telangana with the ruling TRS deciding to hold dharnas across the State and national capital, even as the BJP called for protests at all the district headquarters demanding the State to procure the kharif paddy from farmers without any delay.
On the other hand, farmers in the State are in a fix now whether to go for paddy or not. Since the Food Corporation of India (FCI) is refusing to buy the rabi parboiled paddy, the State asked the farmers to grow paddy only if they had any contract agreements with millers or with seed manufacturers.
The farmers in the State are in a fix now whether to go for paddy or not. Since the Food Corporation of India (FCI) is refusing to buy the rabi parboiled paddy, the State asked the farmers to grow paddy only if they had any contract agreements with millers or with seed manufacturers.
Seeing the situation, hundreds of activists of Bharatiya Kisan Moracha, the farmers’ wing of BJP, took part in dharnas at all the district headquarters in the State, criticising the State for delaying the kharif procurement.
They alleged that though the Union Government has agreed to buy 60 lakh tonnes of kharif rice, the State is deliberately delaying the procurement process.
Telangana Rythu Sangham, a CPM-affiliated farmers’ association, had already organised protests in villages and mandals, asking the State Government to come out with a plan suggesting alternatives to the farmers.
They alleged that the Government introduced a token system this time in some districts for paddy harvesting, which is delaying the procurement process inordinately.
Meanwhole, the ruling TRS has worked out an elaborate plan of agitation against non-purchase of paddy by the Centre. Both the Centre and the State are involved in blaming each other. Opposition parties claim that it is diversionary tactics of TRS as the government had recently increased power tariff. Bus ticket rates have gone up, medicines have become costlier, and soon water tariff is likely to be increased.
Hyderabad along with the tag of being IT Hub, Pharma Hub, Science City seems to be turning out to be Udta Telangana. This certainly has the potential to affect the brand Hyderabad image.
The BJP questions why TRS is raking up this issue now? It never had procurement problem since 2014 to date. The TRS alleges Centre has no brains, they are pro corporate and anti-farmer. While this wordy duel continues between the centre and the state government, it is the farmers who are suffering and are worried.
It’s clear that the state government will not buy paddy and the centre says it is the responsibility of the state to procure, mill it and hand it over to the FCI as per the agreements it had entered with Centre.
It would have been better and perhaps politically more advantageous for the pink party if it had adopted two-pronged strategy: One to buy paddy and the other to launch agitation claiming that they are buying paddy because they are pro-farmer unlike Centre. Maybe it could have put more pressure on the Centre to at least examine the demand of the state government and it would have also made the farmer happy because he is not bothered who buys it. He wants MSP.
TRS has been demanding that the centre should buy entire crop as it is done in Punjab. But the actions of AAP government which had come to power in Punjab indicate that it is the state government that is procuring the Rabi crop. Reports from Punjab said that a farmer, Kashmir Singh, became the first farmer in Punjab to receive MSP payment directly in his bank account in Patiala.
The state food and civil supplies department had procured 51 quintals of wheat in Rajpura on March 31 and it was cleaned and purchased on April 1. Within 24 hours of purchase, the department transferred Rs 1,02,765 directly into the farmer’s bank account. Even labour and transport arrangements were completed well before the start of season. Not just that, all mandis in the state have been kept in readiness.
Political parties can do politics with anything but should spare the farmers. Whatever form of agitation the TRS takes up, it should ensure that the farmer gets MSP for his rabi crop. #KhabarLive #hydnews
