Unseasonal Rains Causing Farmers Misery: JP

Misgovernance has reached such a proportion that a bout of heavy rain in the midst of summer, instead of bringing joy and happiness, has left farmers all over Telangana in great misery, said Loksatta Party national President Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan in Hyderabad on Friday.

In a media statement, JP said that although farmers paid hundreds of crores of rupees as market cess over the years, market yards have remained in an utter state of disrepair.

Most market yards have no compound walls, no shelters for farmers and no covered space for protecting agricultural produce, he explained.

Market committees are under the control of functionaries nominated at the behest of local legislators, and farmers who pay the cess have no say in the management. And the government machinery has been swindling or squandering the cess collected from farmers for unproductive use, he alleged.

JP pointed out that unusual rains in summer and heavy downpours during the monsoons are endemic to India.

"Farmers are suffering not because of an act of nature, but because of misgovernance and corruption," he averred.

JP demanded that the Governor's administration go to the rescue of the affected farmers immediately by extending relief.

More importantly, JP said, steps should be initiated to improve the infrastructure in market yards, transfer their management to elected farmers' committees, and place the market cess at these committees' disposal. (INN)