Nellore: Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) activists staged a demonstration during Rachchabanda programme held at Kovur, 5 km from Nellore, in presence of finance minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy on Monday. They demanded the FM to clear the pending dues of Kovur Cooperative Sugar Factory to the sugarcane farmers.
They alleged that the factory is not even paying salaries to the staff. They said that the factory owes nearly Rs 17 crore for both the farmers and employees.
Reacting sharply to the protest, the minister said that the government has been helping the sugar factories in cooperative sector and blamed the officials for the state of affairs.
He said that six out of nine factories have improved performance but two factories in Chittoor and the one in Kovur are still in debts. He assured to extend aid to the sugar factory in Kovur. Police have detained the activists when they continued to raise slogans.
Meanwhile, Ramanarayana Reddy said that the government has spent a whopping Rs 176 crore as part of the modernisation of the anicut works under Penna delta so far.
The minister who took part in the third phase Rachchabanda programme in Allur and Kovur mandals said that out of the Rs 320 crore sanctioned for the modernisation works of the Penna delta, works to the extent of Rs 170 crore have been completed as of now.
“Apart from this, modernisation works to the tune of another Rs 42 crore have been initiated during the third phase of Rachchabanda programme to ensure smooth supply of irrigation water to the agricultural fields,” he noted.
The minister disbursed 2,918 ration cards, pension orders to 931 and other benefits to the beneficiaries.
