Farmers slam Congress govt over loan waiver, call it ‘big farce’

Predict that the party will lose any election held in the State within the next few months, as the farmers were eager to express their dissatisfaction at the polls

Hyderabad: The farming community in Telangana has voiced strong discontent with the Congress government, accusing it of failing to deliver on its promises.

JSM Reddy, a farmer, small mill owner, and advocate from Nizamabad district, expressed his frustration over the government’s decision to increase the Rythu Bharosa crop investment assistance to Rs 6,000 per season, instead of the promised Rs 7,500.

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Reddy predicted that the Congress would lose any election held in the State within the next few months, as the farmers were eager to express their dissatisfaction at the polls.

Reddy also criticised the loan waiver process, calling it a “big farce.” He revealed that only one of his brothers had received debt relief, while the remaining three were still waiting for their loans to be waived.

“The waiver was kept on hold for different reasons. It is hard to understand,” he said. Reddy, who had campaigned door-to-door for the Congress, now regrets his efforts, stating that the ruling party leaders are on their individual missions and are unlikely to return to power after their term.

KVNL Narasimha Rao, another farmer from Nelakondapalli near Kodad, shared his disappointment over the Cabinet’s decision to enhance Rythu Bharosa by only Rs 1,000 per acre.

“This is disastrous and it was the making of the people, especially the farmers,” he said. Rao lamented that the farmers had pinned all their hopes on the government, particularly since many of the Ministers, including Agriculture Minister Thummala Nageswar Rao, are also farmers. However, he believes the community has been betrayed, and the plight of the farmers is worsening in the villages once again.

Madikunta Narsaia, a farmer from Mahabubabad with a land holding of seven acres, echoed these sentiments. He criticised the Chief Minister for making big promises to the farmers without being confident of implementing them. “All the small and marginal farmers in the district were let down,” Narsaiah said. He expressed disappointment with the government’s decision to provide only Rs 6,000 per acre and per crop as Rythu Bharosa assistance.

“The Chief Minister’s assurances were so sweet, it felt like he was reading out ‘Chandramama Kathalu’ (fairy tales) for the farmers. But ultimately, he proved to be fake,” he added. Narsaiah predicted that the farmers’ aversion would be evident in the upcoming Gram Panchayat polls.

N Venkat Reddy, another farmer with over 12 acres of land under cultivation in Mahabubnagar, added to the criticism saying none of the promises given to the farmers were implemented in a full-fledged manner. “Even today, another issue has been added to the long list of failures. No farmer expected that the government would prove the Rythu Bharosa assistance to be a mere promise that is not going to be fulfilled in full,” Reddy said.