Additional incentive for paddy: KCR
Vows to ensure remunerative price for farmers who cultivate fine variety paddy notwithstanding Centre's restrictions
Hyderabad: Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao on Saturday assured the farmers that the State government will come up with a solution and offer additional incentive for fine variety paddy. He vowed to ensure remunerative price for farmers who cultivated fine variety paddy notwithstanding the Centre’s restrictions and refusal of millers to purchase paddy at Minimum Support Price (MSP) of Rs 1,888 per quintal.
Speaking at the inauguration of a Rythu Vedika in Kodakandla village of Jangaon district on Saturday, the Chief Minister lashed out at the Centre for using its brute force in the Parliament and passing the Agriculture Bills despite protests by the opposition parties and farmers. The new Agriculture Acts were already proving detrimental to the farmers and favourable for corporate companies and middlemen, he said. He demanded to know if any small and marginal farmer from Telangana was in a position to bear transport costs and sell his produce in Delhi.
“Due to these new Agriculture Acts, the rice millers in the State are refusing to purchase paddy at MSP in the State as it is available for less than Rs 1,500 per quintal in neighbouring States. Rythu Vedikas must become platforms to face such challenges and fight against the injustice meted out to farmers,” he said.
Emphasising the need for Rythu Vedikas, Chandrashekhar Rao said farmers had no platform to voice their issues even in developed nations and stated that they can progress faster only through collective work. He suggested that farmers convene meetings regularly and collectively decide on crops to be sown, purchase of seeds and fertilizers, harvesting and also marketing of their yield. “The regulated farming gives more control to farmers and they can decide price of their produce based on demand in the market,” he added.
The Chief Minister explained his plans to bring qualitative reforms in the State agriculture department where an IAS officer will head a new division which will completely focus on market research and make suggestions on crop cultivation. He said the Chief Minister to Ministers, the Chief Secretary to agricultural scientists will interact with the farmers through Rythu Vedikas. He pointed out that the State government launched schemes like Rythu Bandhu or Bima, free and uninterrupted quality power supply, sheep distribution scheme or other welfare scheme without anyone asking for it.
Chandrashekhar Rao urged farmers not to cultivate maize crop in next season. Instead, he suggested them to increase cultivation of redgram and oil palm in about 20 lakh acres each. He also asked them to cultivate other pulses which had huge demand in the market. He reiterated that the State government will not extend Rythu Bandhu scheme to tenant farmers as a policy decision and could lead to unnecessary disputes between land owners and tenant farmers. He clarified that he had no personal enmity with VROs or VRAs, but abolished the system for welfare of farmers.
Further, the Chief Minister vowed to put an end to the land disputes for farmers through effective implementation of Dharani portal. He also revealed his plans to conduct a full-fledged land survey shortly to map and finalise coordinates for agricultural lands in the State to fix their borders.
Showering sops on various communities on the occasion, Chandrashekhar Rao promised to implement the sheep distribution scheme until every family belonging to Yadava and Kuruma community benefits. He revealed his plans to launch Dalita Chaitanya Jyothi scheme soon to empower the SC community. He pointed out that the State government was implementing different welfare and development schemes for all communities in the State.
He lashed out at the opposition parties for making irresponsible statements for political mileage. He said the BJP leaders were interested only in votes but not welfare of farmers. He wanted the farmers to oppose any attempts by external forces to create a division within themselves and work unitedly. He accused Congress leader Mohd Shabbir Ali for burning husk after harvesting his fine variety paddy crop at his farm land in Japthisigunuru of Narsingi mandal in Medak district and claiming to have burnt his paddy fields due to lack of demand in market. He pointed out that the harvesting season for paddy is yet to begin and the Congress leaders were trying to mislead people using social media.
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