Congress betrays farmers, fails to pay Rythu Bima insurance premium: Niranjan Reddy

He said that over 7,000 bereaved farmer families were still awaiting compensation, while more than 450 farmers had taken their own lives in the last 15 months without receiving the financial support due to them

Hyderabad: Former Minister S Niranjan Reddy came down heavily on the Congress government for failing to pay the Rs 750 crore insurance premium under the Rythu Bima farmers’ life insurance scheme. He said that over 7,000 bereaved farmer families were still awaiting compensation, while more than 450 farmers had taken their own lives in the last 15 months without receiving the financial support due to them.

Pointing out the previous BRS government’s track record, Niranjan Reddy stated that between the scheme’s inception and December 4, 2023, Rs 5,909.85 crore was disbursed to farmer families as compensation, while Rs 6,122.65 crore was paid as premiums to LIC.

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“Under the BRS, insurance payments were processed within seven days of a farmer’s death,” he said, pointing out that even the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation had recognised Rythu Bima and Rythu Bandhu as world-class schemes, while the Congress government is trying to scrap them.

Addressing the media at Telangana Bhavan on Tuesday, the former Minister also lashed out at the government’s handling of Rythu Bharosa, questioning why Rs 10,000 crore raised from land mortgage had not been used to clear pending payments.

“While the Agriculture Minister claims Rythu Bharosa has been paid upto three acres, the Deputy Chief Minister says farmers up to three acres are yet to get it. Who is lying?” he asked.

Accusing the Congress of incompetence, Niranjan Reddy said there was “no water, no electricity, no Rythu Bharosa or Rythu Bima” for those toiling in the fields. Farmers were being forced to let their crops wither and use them as fodder for cattle. He slammed the government for failing to review the Yasangi crop situation, stating that the Ministers were ignoring ground realities, while the Chief Secretary falsely assured that there was no irrigation crisis.

He reminded that the Kamareddy Farmers’ Declaration released by Congress Lok Sabha leader Rahul Gandhi turned out to be a bane, rather than a boon for farmers, with the government failing to fulfill its promises. Calling the Congress a government of lies and broken promises, he urged farmers not to take extreme steps but punish the government at appropriate time.