TRS, TDP spar over farmers’ suicides

Hyderabad: A four-and-a-half hour extended evening session of the Telangana State Assembly to discuss the farmers’ suicides was marred by TDP protests. In a strategic move, TRS Ministers countered Opposition members whenever they attempted to make their point. The agitated TDP members barged into the Well of the House protesting the style of functioning of the government.

Initiating the debate, the Congress member T Jeevan Reddy, criticised the government for lack of foresight in taking preventive measures ahead of the kharif season. Farmers had voted TRS to power expecting relief from mounting loan burden. But the government belied their hopes. He suggested that the government should come out with a month-wise details of power purchased. While expressing that his party was ready to support the government in its fight to get its due share of power from the AP, he demanded the government to provide Rs 5 lakh compensation to the families of the farmers who committed suicide and an additional Rs 100 per quintal as bonus while purchasing farm produce by the government.

TDP MLA E Dayakar Rao said that it was the faulty policies of the government that had disappointed the farmers and forcing them to take the extreme step. Though 2 lakh quintals of cotton had come to the market yard in Warangal, only 2016 quintals was purchased so far at a low price of Rs 3,700 per quintal, he pointed out.

BJP member C Ramachandra Reddy challenged the government to state that there were no suicides in Telangana. The BJP members came down heavily on the government for depending on the faulty data provided by the officials, and questioned the government as to why it has been shying away from coming out with the actual figures on farmers’ suicides. When the government was claiming to do a lot in the agriculture sector, then why were the farmers committing suicides, he questioned.

Earlier, intervening during the discussion, Ministers -- T Harish Rao, Pocharam Srinivas Reddy, Etela Rajender and Jagadishwar Reddy said the government was concerned about farmers’ suicides and was taking preventive measures.

It was not proper to target the four-month old government for farmers’ suicides. Agriculture Minister Srinivas Reddy said that the government had started implementing several measures to help farmers. The government was helping the farmers to get livestock. The pilot project was launched in Mahbubnagar and would be extended to all districts. Similarly, it was encouraging fish tanks. It would benefit 35 lakh fishermen in the state.