Solve Farmers’ Issues Before Assembly Special Session On GST: YS Jagan

* To prevent farmers from attending YS Jagan’s Rythu Deeksha, the government declared a holiday for the Mirchi Yard, which is close to the deeksha site.

* The power tariff has been hiked thrice. While the Polavaram project cost has hiked from 17000 crore to 40000 crore, the mess charges of SC, ST and BC students have not been increased.

* The remunerative price of chillis which stood at Rs 6000 to Rs 7000 per quintal, has now come down to Rs 2000 to 4000.

YSRCP chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy warned that the assembly would not be allowed to function if the farmers issues are not solved before the special session of the assembly to ratify the GST bill. He said he would intensify the agitation on behalf of the farmers and said no government that ignored the farmers had survived in history.

YSRCP chief YS Jagan strongly criticised Chandrababu Naidu government for ignoring the farm sector and for not coming to the succour of the farmers in times of their worst crises.

Addressing at the end of the two-day Rythu Deeksha at Nallapadu in Guntur district, YS Jagan said Chandrababu had never fought for the minimum support price for the farm produce. Ridiculing Chandrababu Naidu's claim of bettering his own record, YS Jagan sarcastically said that Chandrababu is indeed bettering his own record in bringing down the area under cultivation and reducing the support price to the farm produce.

He said after Chandrababu Naidu took over, the area under Kharif cultivation has come down from 43.86 lakh hectares to 37 lakh hectares last year. Similarly, area under Rabi cultivation has come down from 27 lakh hectares in 2013-14 to last years's 19.78 lakh hectaeres.

He also pointed out that the remunerative price of chillis which stood at Rs 6000 to Rs 7000 per quintal, has now come down to Rs 2000 to 4000. During the nine years of Chandrababu Naidu rule, the minimum support price has gone up by a mere Rs 178 per quintal. During the five year reign of YS Rajasekhara Reddy, the MSP grew by Rs 1030.

Referring to the poll-eve promise of crop loan waiver, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said Chandrababu's actions were the most farcical. He said let alone the 86000 crore crop loan, the farmers are forced to pay Rs 16000 per year towards interest.

"Where is the farm price stabilisation fund that Chandrababu had promised? It has already been three years, but it is nowhere in sight," he reminded. He said the story of black gram, subabul, cotton, tomato and all other farm produce was much the same.

"The power tariff has been hiked thrice. While the Polavaram project cost has hiked from 17000 crore to 40000 crore, the mess charges of SC, ST and BC students have not been increased. It seems Chandrababu doesn't love the people of the state. He only loves contractors,"Jagan said.