Congress Seeks Release Of Arrested Chilli Farmers

Demanding that the State government unconditionally release the Khammam mirchi farmers from judicial custody and withdraw the cases against them, Congress MLC Ponguleti Sudhakar Reddy opined that such incidents were taking place because there was no comprehensive agriculture and marketing policy.

Ponguleti met Marketing Minister T Harish Rao on Saturday and submitted a memorandum in this regard.

Speaking to the media at Assembly Media Hall later, Ponguleti said that the facts would come out if the government collected the details of the farmers arrested by the police. He said that the farmers were being victimised by the traders and middlemen, and were badly suffering from the negligent attitude of the agriculture officials and staff, and that getting arrested was the final nail in the coffin for them.

The condition of the farmers could be guaged by seeing the death of a turmeric farmer in the market, he said, and alleged that both the state and the union governments were "playing games" for political gains.

He also alleged that looting was going on in the modernisation of the Nagarjuna Sagar Project canals with the funds of World Bank, and said that he had also addressed a letter to the Chief Minister in this regard.

Ponguleti also asked the Chief Minister to interfere in the tragic incidents taking place in the state's government hospitals. "Health Minister C Laxma Reddy should have tendered his resignation by now," he said.