HYDERABAD: The Modi-led Centre has taken never-before measures to make agriculture profitable, claimed Union Minister Kishan Reddy on Saturday, prompting an immediate reaction from State Agriculture Minister S Niranjan Reddy who said that the Centre was anything but farmer-friendly.
Addressing a press conference at the BJP party office in Hyderabad, Kishan said that the hike in MSP for crops would take effect from the coming Kharif season. He also said that the Centre would provide fertiliser subsidies to farmers.
Kishan said that under the Kisan Credit Card scheme, the Centre had sanctioned agri loans amounting to Rs 28,590 crore and that 23 crore soil health cards were distributed. He claimed a substantial increase in the agricultural budget, which grew 5.7 times from 2014 to Rs 1.25 lakh crore.
He claimed an 80% increase in sunflower oil exports since 2014, a 50% hike in MSP for maize and soy, 82% for Sajjas, 52% for vegetables, and a hike of Rs 1,360 MSP for common rice.
Responding to this, Niranjan Reddy accused the Centre of merely claiming that loans were a form of help for farmers, and that fertiliser subsidies were not a new initiative. He accused the Modi government of in fact reducing subsidies on fertilisers.
He challenged Kishan to show proof of even a single bag of urea given to farmers from the Ramagundam Fertiliser Factory, alleging that it had been diverted to the commercial market. Niranjan Reddy also criticised the Centre for emulating Rythu Bandhu but allocating only Rs 9,000 crore.He accused the Centre of reducing loans under the Kisan Samman Yojana from 38 lakh to 29 lakh.