Fulfill Old Promises before giving ‘Surprise Gift’ to Farmers: Uttam tells KCR

Hyderabad, May 30 (Maxim News):Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) President & Nalgonda MP . N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Saturday demanded that Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao first fulfill the old promises he had made with the farmers before giving ‘surprise gift’ which he announced while inaugurating Konda Pochamma Sagar project yesterday.

Addressing a video-conference with party ZPTCs at Gandhi Bhavan, Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the Chief Minister should do a serious introspection before making another promise with the farmers as none of the promises which he made in the past were fulfilled. He demanded that the Chief Minister first procure entire paddy and maize crops at MSP and also clear the dues of Red Gram farmers. He asked KCR to first fulfill the promise of waiving off crop loans up to Rs. 1 lakh. He also pay Rythu Bandhu assistance to all the farmers without imposing any conditions. He reminded that nearly 40% of farmers were being deprived of Rythu Bandhu amount on one pretext or the others. Further, he said that the benefit of Rythu Beema scheme should be extended to all the farmers without any discrimination. He said that the farmers neither got proper Minimum Support Price (MSP) for their produce nor the Market Intervention Fund of Rs. 1,000 Crore, earmarked in the annual budget, was ever utilised to support the farmers.

Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that no assistance was provided to the families of more than 4,500 farmers who committed suicide since 2014 under TRS regime. Further, he said that the farmers never got any compensation for the losses to their crops due to natural calamities like drought or unseasonal rains. He reminded that Chilli farmers in Khammam were arrested, tortured and jailed for demanding better prices for their produce. Similarly, farmers in Medak and other districts were caned when they held protest against erratic power supply. He said that the list of crimes committed by KCR regime against farmers was too long. Therefore, he said that KCR should not try to cheat the farmers further by making another fake promise.

The TPCC President said that the Chief Minister should withdraw the new agricultural policy which forces the farmers to grow crops suggested by the government. He said that the move was dictatorial in nature and it does not guarantee any protection to farmers’ investments in a crop.

Uttam Kumar Reddy said that the farmers of Telangana were doing cultivation due to the irrigation projects constructed during Nizam’s era and Congress regimes. He said that the KCR Government did not construct a single project that really benefits the farmers. He said Kaleshwaram Project was constructed only to get commissions and kickbacks from the contractors. He said that the Chief Minister was deceiving the people by showing the Ayacut of Sriram Sagar Project as of Kaleshwaram’s. He said that the KCR has always made fake promises and false claims to deceive the people and KCR’s ‘surprise gift’ for farmers was just another mirage.

The TPCC chief alleged that the TRS Government has weakened the local bodies and no funds were being given to Panchayats or Mandal Parishads. He said that the present KCR regimes would be remembered in history for its worst administration and mismanagement of resources. He alleged that KCR was used his ill-gotten money to purchase MLAs and other elected representatives.

Uttam Kumar Reddy directed the Congress cadre to strengthen the party and take up public issues and agitation. (Maxim News)