Govt. betraying turmeric farmers, failed to disburse Rythu Bharosa even to ryots with holding up to 3 acres: BRS

K. Kavitha | Photo Credit: Nagara Gopal

HYDERABAD

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLC K. Kavitha has alleged that the State government has been neglecting the concerns of turmeric farmers over the poor price being offered by traders to their produce after forming into a syndicate.

Despite the establishment of the Turmeric Board and the Congress party’s promise to ensure at least ₹15,000 per quintal price to the spices crop, the farmers were getting an average of ₹9,000 per quintal as the traders with the connivance of the agricultural marketing officials were exploiting the farmers.

She termed it nothing but betrayal of turmeric farmers both by the Congress party and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the latter for washing off hands by simply establishing the Turmeric Board. Neither the leaders of Congress nor those of BJP had any time even to meet farmers in distress due to the poor price for their produce.

Stating that lack of legal/statute support to the Turmeric Board was denying any benefit with it to farmers, the BRS leader requested the State and Central governments to come to the rescue of turmeric farmers by ensuring remunerative price to their produce.

Another leader of BRS S. Niranjan Reddy said against the State government claims of releasing ₹3,487.82 crore for 58.13 lakh acres extent under Rythu Bharosa at ₹6,000 per acre had failed to reach many of the 44,82,265 farmers with landholding up to three acres till date from January 26. Even those having one-acre holding in some villages had not received the benefit, he said, and sought to know how the government would complete disbursement by March 31.

He alleged that the government had raised ₹10,000 crore for Rythu Bharosa by mortgaging 400 acres of land at Kancha Gachibowli in the city but had diverted it to clear the bills of major contractors. He sought to know when all farmers with 1.48 crore acres holding would get Rythu Bharosa as it had not reached even 58.13 lakh acres so far, despite pruning the amount from ₹7,500 per acre to ₹6,000.