BRS demands compensation for Ghanpur ayacut farmers after govt declares crop holiday
BRS leaders staged a protest at the Medak Collectorate demanding compensation for farmers under the Ghanpur project after the irrigation department announced no water release for Yasangi. The party alleged government neglect of farmers’ issues and warned of intensified protests
Medak: BRS leaders led by district president M Padma Devendar Reddy and V Sunitha Lakshma Reddy staged a protest at the Medak Collectorate on Monday, demanding compensation for farmers under the Ghanpur project. As the irrigation department has announced that water will not be released to the ayacut under the Ghanpur project for Yasangi, the party demanded Rs.25,000 compensation for 40,000 acres in the Narsapur and Medak Assembly constituencies.
Since repair works on Singur will be taken up over the next four seasons, V Sunitha Lakshma Reddy said the government’s decision would push farmers under the project into a crisis. The former MLA said distressed farmers were being forced to drill borewells in their fields to cultivate crops.
She also said that Medak MLA Mynampally Rohit had not even responded to the issue, which exposed his lack of concern for the farming community. The BRS leader further alleged that Congress leaders were resorting to illegal sand mining from the Manjeera river, causing serious damage to its ecological balance.
Exposing the Congress government’s lack of concern for farmers’ issues, Padma Devendar Reddy said the government had failed to provide Rythu Bharosa, waive farm loans, pay compensation to farmers whose crops were damaged due to heavy rains during Vanakalam and extend crop insurance benefits.
V Sunitha Lakshma Reddy said the Congress government had failed to ensure even 24 hour power supply and was also denying bonus on paddy already procured. She said there would be a shortage of drinking water during summer as Singur would be emptied completely, but the government had no alternative plan to deal with the situation.
Lashing out at the government for making urea bookings mandatory through a mobile app, she said the shortage had forced farmers to stand in long queues for hours to buy a bag. Unless the government announced compensation, the BRS threatened to intensify its protests in the days to come.
Later, the leaders submitted a representation to Additional Collector Menchu Nagesh.