Rebutting the charges of Congress leaders and Praja Rajyam Party president K Chiranjeevi that his
indefinite fast was launched for political mileage, Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday described himself as a "son of the soil", and stated that his fast was an expression of gratitude to farmers.
Releasing a letter to the media, in which he addressed the farmers of the state, at New MLA quarters in Adarsh Nagar, where his fast entered the 3rd day, the TDP chief said, "My parents, till their last breath, were dependent on agriculture. As a son of a farmer, I want to ensure justice for farmers. This is the motive behind my indefinite fast, which is aimed at following the path shown by Gandhiji, Satyagraha. I will continue this fast until farmers get justice and remunerative price for their produce damaged due to natural disasters."
Naidu called upon farmers not to lose their hopes and commit suicides, and sought their cooperation and support for his fast.
The TDP chief alleged that the Congress has hatched a conspiracy to separate him from farmers by leveling baseless charges and allegations against him.
The former chief minister stated in his 3-page letter that the working group of chief ministers and union ministers had recommended a payment of Rs. 10,000 as the compensation per acre of crop, 4% interest on loans, and the procuring of damaged produce at the Minimum Support Price.
He argued that when he himself had raised the same demands with the state government, the Congress and other parties were seeing in the act a political stunt.
The former chief minister pointed out that though the state budget saw a 4-fold increase, from Rs. 30,000 crore to Rs. 1.30 lakh crore, the farmers were unfortunately being left out.
The TDP chief wondered how the government could think that the input subsidy could not be more than Rs. 600 an acre when farmers invest anything from Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 30,000 per acre on planting crops.
Naidu also pointed out that his demand for the purchase of cotton at the rate of Rs. 4,500 per quintal was also disregarded, unlike in the other states in the country where cotton farmers were getting just dues for their labour.
The former CM demanded that the government implement the M S Swaminathan Commission recommendations for uplifting farmers' lives, and urged the government to provide remunerative price for cotton and sugar cane.
The TDP chief also demanded that the government make its stand clear on paying insurance for crop loss, and the 9-hour uninterrupted power supply scheme to farmers. Recalling that the National Front government led by NTR had waived loans of farmers first time, he demanded that the government waive interest and reschedule loans.
Courtesy: INN