Congress Asks KCR To Stop Farmers' Suicide

The Telangana Congress has expressed serious concerns over the rise in incidents of suicides by farmers in the State.

Addressing a joint press conference at Gandhi Bhavan on Thursday, Leader of the Opposition K Jana Reddy, TPCC President Ponnala Lakshmaiah, and MLCs Mohammed Ali Shabbir and Ponguleti Sudhakar Reddy demanded that the government act fast in extending financial assistance to the debt-ridden farmers.

Jana Reddy said that the government should act at least on humanitarian grounds to help the farmers who were in distress.

He alleged that Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao had been making hollow statements, and taking no concrete steps to resolve the agrarian crisis.

Showing a news clipping to media persons, Ponnala said that a farmer, Rathore Suresh, had committed suicide by getting electrocuted via a transformer on Wednesday.

He said that at least this horrific incident should force the government to wake up from its slumber.

Delayed monsoons, deficient rainfall and non-implementation of loan waiver promises were forcing farmers to take extreme steps, he said, and added that the delay by the government in remitting the first installment of loan waiver had deprived the farmers of crop insurance.

He demanded that the government not only waive off the farmers' loans, but also pay a compensation equal to what they would have got from insurance companies in case of failure of their crops.

The Congress leaders threatened to launch a massive agitation if the State Government failed to help the farmers.

Earlier, they paid rich tributes to Mahatma Gandhi on the occasion of his birth anniversary. Floral tributes were also paid to former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri on his birth anniversary. (INN)