Pre-2014 conditions making a return in Telangana under Congress rule, say BRS leaders

BRS leaders criticize Congress government in Telangana for anti-farmer policies, lack of benefits, and betrayal of promises.

HYDERABAD

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leaders Koppula Eshwar, Dasari Manohar Reddy, Putta Madhu and others have observed that pre-2014 conditions were making a comeback in Telangana with the Congress government pursuing anti-people and anti-farmer policies.

A total of about 620 farmers had ended lives during the last one year and the increase in farmers’ suicides since taking over of the Congress government was an indication of the changing scenario, they said addressing a press conference here on Tuesday. Irrespective of the cause of death the surviving families of farmers would get ₹5 lakh insurance benefit under Rythu Bima during the BRS rule but now even that benefit was not given properly.

By making some ministers issue statements that farmers were preferring ₹500 per quintal bonus to fine varieties of paddy over the investment support of ₹15,000 per acre a year promised under Rythu Bharosa, the government appears to be making the farming community ready mentally for discontinuation of the scheme.

Despite the government claims, even the ₹2 lakh crop loan waiver per farmer, later changed per family, was not implemented fully, they said and stated that of the 1.55 lakh farmers with outstanding debt in banks in Peddapalli, 95,000 were yet to get the loan waiver so far.

Speaking separately, party MLAs K.P. Vivekanand and Madhavaram Krishna Rao alleged that the Congress government had betrayed even those engaged in the community-based vocations too for the last one year by not extending the schemes which were introduced for their welfare and development by the previous BRS government.

At another press conference, party leaders G. Devi Prasad Rao, Manne Goverdhan Reddy and others alleged that the government was adopting delaying tactics on doing justice to the GO 317 victims.