HYDERABAD: Activists of the ruling TRS party, including Ministers and MLAs, staged dharnas across the State on Friday demanding that the Central government procure the entire stock of Kharif paddy produced in Telangana. This is the first time since the TRS came to power seven years ago that all the cadre of the pink party swung into an agitation mode.
As the Food Corporation of India (FCI) decided to buy only around 59 lakh tonnes of Kharif rice, the State government wanted the Centre to procure entire 1.1 crore tonnes of rice produced in the just-concluded Kharif season. Alleging that the Centre was procuring paddy from Punjab and neglecting the farmers of Telangana, the TRS leaders held dharnas to expose “the dual standards of the Centre”.
Participating in a dharna in Sircilla, TRS working president and Minister KT Rama Rao declared that the agitations would continue till the Centre concedes its demand. “TRS means Telangana Rythu Samithi and it will continue its fight against the Centre demanding justice for the former of Telangana,” he said.
While enumerating the pro-farmer welfare measures initiated by the TRS government, including construction of Kaleshwaram project, Rama Rao said that in contrast, the Central government failed to address people’s hunger. “India stood in 101st place in global hunger index rankings. Smaller countries like Bangladesh and Nepal stood in 76th place, whereas Pakistan got 96th rank,” he said.
Rama Rao said that normally the State government buys paddy and gives it to Food Corporation of India. The process went on smoothly for the last six years but suddenly the Centre said that it would not procure the full stock of paddy from TS, he alleged. The Central BJP leaders were saying that they would not buy paddy, but the State BJP leaders wanted the government to purchase the paddy. “The State BJP president is not Bandi Sanjay. He is Tondi (one who plays a foul game) Sanjay,” he said.
Leading the demonstrators in Siddipet, Finance Minister T Harish Rao said: “We staged several dharnas in the past for the sake of separate State. Now, we are organising dharnas for the sake of farmers.” “The farmers are happy after the formation of the State as the government resolved their problems. But, the new electricity and farm laws of the Central government are pushing farmers into problems,” he alleged. “The Chief Minister is fighting with the Central government and categorically stated that the State would not fix meters to the agriculture pump sets,” Harish Rao said.
Other Ministers including Errabelli Dayakar Rao, A Indra Karan Reddy, G Jagadish Reddy, P Sabitha Indra Reddy, MPs and MLAs participated in the dharnas in their respective areas. During dharnas, the TRS activists and Ministers raised slogans against the Narendra Modi government.
Centre failed to address people’s hunger: KTR
Enumerating the pro-farmer welfare measures initiated by the TRS government, including construction of Kaleshwaram project, KT Rama Rao said that in contrast the Central government failed to address people’s hunger. “India stood in 101st place in global hunger index rankings. Smaller countries like Bangladesh and Nepal stood in 76th place, whereas Pakistan got 96th rank,” he said. Normally the State govt buys paddy and gives it to FCI. But suddenly the Centre said that it would not procure entire paddy produced in the State, he added.