BARGARH: With the state government failing to resolve the problems related to paddy registration, farmers of Bargarh on Sunday warned of intensifying protests if corrective measures were not taken immediately.
At a meeting held under the banner of Jai Kisan Andolan here, farmer leaders said the government’s flawed policy has left thousands of cultivators in a limbo.
They alleged that due to restrictive timelines and faulty procedures, a large number of cultivators could not complete registration this year. As a result, they now face exclusion not only from input subsidy benefits but also from the minimum support price (MSP) system.
The farmers also criticised the silence of elected representatives over the issue, stating that the apathy amounted to betrayal of the farming community. They said while neighbouring Chhattisgarh allows a four-month registration period, Odisha enforces a limited time frame, pushing genuine farmers out of the process. The government should immediately open avenues for registration of all farmers left out of the process, they said.
Farmer representatives further dismissed the claims of officials about the number of registrations being higher this year compared to the previous year. They said the number of farmers enrolled may have gone up but the total area of land registered has not increased, exposing loopholes in the government’s policy.
General secretary of the outfit Hara Bania said, “The meeting ended with a unanimous call for urgent intervention, warning that the simmering unrest could intensify if corrective measures were not taken immediately.”
Among others, president of the outfit Sushil Kumar Sahu, Paschim Odisha Krushak Sangathan Samannay Samiti convener Lingaraj and senior farmer leader Siba Prasad Pradhan were present.