Tension at G.D. Nellore As Police Stop YSRC Protest Over Mango Prices
Party seeks Rs 17 per kg support price, alleges government failed to protect mango farmers
Tirupati: Tense situation prevailed in G.D. Nellore constituency of Chittoor district on Tuesday after police prevented YSRC leaders from staging a protest in support of mango farmers demanding a remunerative price for their produce.
A large number of farmers from Chittoor, G.D. Nellore and Puthalapattu joined the protest. Police stopped the demonstration, detained several YSRC leaders and shifted them from the venue. Party leaders alleged that they were not allowed to protest peacefully.
Addressing the gathering, YSRC Chittoor district president Bhumana Karunakar Reddy alleged that the coalition government had failed to ensure a remunerative support price for mango farmers. He demanded that the government fix a support price of Rs17 per kg for mangoes and questioned why it was ignoring the farmers' concerns.
Referring to Karnataka, Bhumana claimed that the Centre had agreed to procure 1.30 lakh tonnes of Totapuri mangoes at Rs 17.50 per kg and urged the Andhra Pradesh government to secure similar support for farmers in the state.
He further claimed that during the previous YSRC government led by Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, the price of Totapuri mangoes never fell below Rs 25 per kg. He said the party would continue its agitation until farmers received a fair price for their produce.
