YS Jagan's Rythu Bharosa Yatra to highlight farmers' suicides in Andhra Pradesh

It is yatra time for YSR Congress chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy as summer months and farmers agonies heighten each day with mounting debts, loss of crops and harassment by banks.

This is his third campaign in the month for farmers after his deeksha in Tanuku, West Godavari recently. Jagan has been been fighting against the TDP government's allegedly unfair practices in land pooling for the state capital. He has now launched another crusade through his five-day Rythu Bharosa Yatra on Sunday to highlight farmers issues and alarming suicides in Anantapuram district of Andhra Pradesh.

It may be recollected that Congress President Sonia Gandhi had also launched a similar campaign to highlight farmers' suicides from Anantapur in 2003. The district which is most arid with low ground water table had recorded largest number of farmer suicides which attracted the attention of the UPA chair person to visit the district. After UPA won in 2004, Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Bandlapalli in the district to launch the MNREGS, a unique program aimed to provide wage-employment to landless and small farmers throughout the year. Now, Jagan too is following in the foot steps of Sonia Gandhi to appease the farmers.

YS Jagan Mohan Reddy who arrived at Kodikonda Check post on the AP–Karnataka border in Chilamattur Mandal of drought prone Anantapur district from Bangalore will tour the district and meet families of the farmers who have committed suicides due to heavy debts, lack of irrigation and supportive MSP to their produce.

Huge crowds waited for Jagan and scrambled to shake hands with him at the border village as he visited the family of Kuruba Siddappa of Mamidakulapalli of Lepakshi mandal and consoled his family members. Farmer Siddappa (36) committed suicide last year as crops failed and debts mounted which he could not settle.The YSR Congress president then addressed a public meeting at the Ambedkar centre in Hindupur.

The YSRC took credit for its campaign as the TDP government has now announced ex-gratia to the kin of the farmers of Anantapur who committed suicide. “We are happy that the family of farmers are getting ex-gratia and the timing coincides with YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s Rythu Bharosa Yatra recording victory for YSRC campaign,” party spokesperson K Parthasarathi told reporters

All the 67 odd YSRC legislators of Andhra Pradesh will be visiting the villages’ ear marked for land pooling to facilitate construction of new capital for Andhra Pradesh in Guntur district on Monday. "We will be meeting the farmers who were forced to give consent to part with their precious land so that we could echo their feelings during the Budget session beginning March 7," Party's Mangalagiri MLA Alla Ramakrishna Reddy said.