Telangana grows sans support

Telangana comes a long way from 2014 when the conditions in State were similar to Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh

Hyderabad: Telangana region in the pre-Statehood era was considered one of the most backward areas in the country — perenially drought-hit and parched with little or no irrigation facility and a pathetic power situation that had the agriculture sector in the doldrums. The conditions that prevailed in 2014 when Telangana finally achieved Statehood were similar to Rajasthan and neighbouring Chhattisgarh which too lacked basic infrastructure, carrying the ignominy of being among the most backward States in the country.

Fast forward to 2022, Telangana not only sped past Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh in agriculture and other economic activities but also entered the big league of developed States like Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra, among others, in terms of GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product) and the Per Capita Income. In pole position on various counts, Telangana, in a matter of six years, emerged as the fourth largest contributor to the nation’s GDP, besides creating a history of sorts for itself in the agriculture sector that proved to be a blessing for the nation during the Covid pandemic beginning 2020. And all these without any support from the Centre!

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In complete contrast, the Congress-led government in Chhattisgarh, despite having weather conditions similar to Telangana and adequate water resources has not seen any progress with no major irrigation project constructed. Though farmers receive Rs 9,000 per acre under Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojna to ensure fair price to farmers, boost the productivity of Kharif crops and encourage crop diversification, it applies to only select crops, unlike Telangana’s Rythu Bandhu under which Rs 5,000 per acre is provided at the start of both Kharif (Vaanakalam) and Rabi (Yasangi) seasons. In Chhattisgarh, the amount is paid in four quarterly instalments.

Moreover, farmers in Chhattisgarh are largely dependent on rains and deep-dug borewells (more than 500-900 feet) to water their crops. Considering the poor infrastructure and intermittent power cuts, the farmers are also dependent on solar pump sets, and even here, the Congress government only provides solar panels, forcing the farmers to cough up huge amounts to purchase pump sets by themselves.

The situation is no different in Rajasthan, another Congress-ruled State. With an eye on the Assembly polls next year, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot presented the first separate Budget for agriculture with a budgetary provision of Rs 89,000 crore. Farmers, however, are doubtful whether the separate Budget would provide them with any benefit at all.

For instance, the Gehlot government is yet to fulfil its 2018 poll promise of a loan waiver for farmers. Except for loans availed by farmers from State-owned rural banks, none of the loans taken from public sector banks have been waived. While the Telangana government has waived farm loans in a phased manner irrespective of the bank from which the loan was availed, the Rajasthan government has been blaming the Centre for not agreeing to waive loans taken by farmers from nationalised banks which are now auctioning off farmlands.

By Gehlot’s own admission, till recently, farmers in 15 districts were not supplied power for agriculture activities during the daytime. The government has been imposing power cuts of 6-9 hours during the day on account of the power crisis sweeping across the country. Though it had conceived the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP), the Gehlot government has now asked the Centre to take it up as a national project failing which it would take at least 15 years for the State government to complete it.

Under Rajiv Gandhi Krishak Sathi Yojna, the Rajasthan government provides an accidental insurance cover of Rs 3 lakh to farmers. In the case of the death of a farmer for any reason, the Telangana government provides his/her family Rs 5 lakh under Rythu Bima. Further, the fact that around 3.38 lakh applications from farmers for power supply connections are pending in Rajasthan is self-explanatory about their plight.

Over the years, the Chandrashekhar Rao government launched numerous innovative schemes such as Rythu Bandhu, Rythu Bima, free and uninterrupted quality power supply to support farmers in the State toiling hard in the fields. The construction of the massive irrigation project, Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS), once considered impossible, was realised and Mission Kakatiya was taken up to revive old and defunct tanks in villages across the State that had groundwater levels zooming up.

Besides providing seed and fertilizer at subsidised prices, the State government also implemented crop loan waiver scheme of up to Rs 1 lakh for the second consecutive term. Rythu Vedikas were constructed, godown space was increased to 24 lakh tonnes from just four lakh tonnes. The rest, as they say, is history with Telangana emerging as the largest supplier of rice to the Food Corporation of India (FCI) last year, no mean achievement for an area that was virtually uncultivable.

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