Harish Rao holds Congress responsible for farmer deaths, demands Rs 5 lakh ex-gratia

Former Minister T Harish Rao criticised Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy for focusing on events like Miss World while farmers struggled at procurement centres

Siddipet: Former Minister T Harish Rao on Monday termed the deaths of four farmers at paddy procurement centres in the State as murders by the Congress government, alleging that delays and negligence forced farmers to wait for days under harsh conditions.

Speaking to reporters in Siddipet after inspecting rain-damaged paddy at the agricultural market, Rao criticised Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy for focusing on events like Miss World while farmers struggled at procurement centres. He demanded that the government announce an ex-gratia of Rs.5 lakh to the families of deceased farmers. Rao said farmers were forced to sleep at procurement centres to protect their produce from rain and theft, facing numerous hardships due to the lack of tarpaulins, gunny bags, paddy cleaners, and hamalis.

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Talking to marketing officials, Rao questioned the delay in arranging hamalis and lorries to transport paddy to rice mills. He alleged that officials and millers were unfairly deducting 5 to 8 kg per quintal, citing moisture and quality issues, which was a grave injustice to farmers.

Rao said Congress leaders who once visited procurement centres while in opposition were now avoiding them as the government had failed to address farmers’ problems. He demanded immediate procurement of soaked paddy to prevent it from rotting further.

He also blamed the government for delays in payment, stating that even after 10 days of procurement, farmers had not received their dues, contradicting Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageshwar Rao’s claim that payments were made within 48 hours.

Rao further accused the Congress of betraying farmers by not fulfilling promises like loan waivers and Rythu Bharosa benefits. He interacted with farmers to understand the duration of their wait at procurement centres.