CM's Agriculture Review An 'Eye Wash': Harish
Harish Rao also reiterated his earlier charge that a Rs 2,000-crore scam had taken place in purchase of supplies for students of Gurukul schools.
HYDERABAD: Former minister and senior BRS leader T. Harish Rao said that Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy’s review of agriculture department on Tuesday was a “mere eyewash” which tried to mask the Congress government’s conspiracy to completely withdraw crop bonus.
Harish Rao, in a statement, asked if the meeting was conducted only to impose further restrictions on farmers and reduce the burden of bonus payments. “The Congress promised a ₹500 bonus for all crops in its election manifesto. Later, it restricted the bonus to 33 varieties of fine paddy. Now, it has further reduced eligibility to just seven varieties. This clearly exposes the government’s intention to evade its commitment to farmers,” he said.
He also questioned the fate of farmers who had already prepared nurseries of other varieties of rice based on earlier government announcements.
Criticising the government’s crop diversification campaign, Harish Rao said many farmers who trusted official advice and cultivated maize, sorghum, sunflower, soybean and groundnut had suffered heavy losses. “Will the government guarantee procurement of these crops at a minimum support price? What assurance is there that farmers will not be abandoned just as they were during the previous season,” he asked.
Harish Rao also said that the government review completely ignored critical issues such as Rythu Bharosa assistance, crop bonus payments, crop insurance, and Rythu Bima.
