Inept govt. thrusting man-made calamity on ryots, says KCR
Enormity of the artificial calamity currently gripping Telangana is much bigger than any natural calamity; 200 farmers died in the last 100 days of the Congress government: BRS president
Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) president and former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao has launched a ‘stinging’ attack on all those who are at the helm in the Congress government for “sheer incompetence that nullified the benefits given to farmers during the BRS rule and imposed a manmade calamity on them.”
“The enormity of the ‘artificial’ calamity presently gripping Telangana is much bigger than any natural calamity,” he said, adding that a “total of 200 farmers died in the last 100 days of the Congress government” in the State.
“We have already sent the list of the deceased farmers to the authorities and the government should sanction ₹25 lakh ex gratia each to the bereaved families,” Mr. Rao said while addressing the media in Sircilla on Friday.
“The ‘miserable’ failure of the Congress government to manage water resources and letting out 50 tmc of water to go waste into the sea by magnifying the damage to two pillars of the Medigadda barrage
took a heavy toll on farmers, resulting in withering of crops in 15 to 20 lakh acres,” the former CM said.
“Compensation of ₹25,000 per acre should be paid,” he demanded. The pre2014 precarious water situation has returned to haunt the people of Telangana with water scarcity looming large and tankers resurfacing in the nearly four months of Congress rule,” he alleged.
Defends KLIP
Claiming that the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) was constructed scientifically based on the LiDAR survey data, Mr. Rao said that it proved a boon to the farmers. It ensured that the reservoirs,
tanks and other water bodies brim with water throughout the year and replenish the groundwater table in the old undivided Karimnagar district and various other districts. The SRSP rejuvenation scheme is notable among the projects completed by the BRS government giving a fillip to irrigation and boost to agriculture production, the BRS leader noted.
Those at the helm in the Congress dispensation are hellbent upon showing the minor damage to two to three piers of the Medigadda barrage through a magnifying glass to blame our government at the cost of farmers for their narrow political gains, he added.
He said, “It is only after my visit to the agricultural fields affected by the manmade calamity that this government released water from the Nagarjunasagar project into the left canal and from the Gayatri pumphouse into Flood Flow Canal. Had the government ensured release of water 20 days ago, the standing crops of the farmers would have been saved.”
Threatens protest
If the government failed to take appropriate steps to ensure release of water from the KLIP, the BRS will organise a march to the project with thousands of farmers to protect their interests, he warned, and also accused the government of deceiving farmers by failing to deliver on promises such as waiver of farm loan up to ₹2 lakh, and payment of ₹500 bonus per quintal of crops.
“Weavers of Sircilla are reeling under crisis in the powerloom sector due to the failure of the Congress government to place orders for production of fabric for Bathukamma, Ramzan and Christmas festivals, an initiative implemented by the previous BRS government providing assured work and income to the weavers,” he said.