If the Telangana Rashtra Samithi is banking on its unique scheme Rythu Bandhu to attract the votes of farmers, the Telangana Congress party is planning to attract them with the promise of enhancing minimum support price.
While the Rythu Bandhu scheme is applicable only to land owners, majority of them are not exactly farmers, the enhanced MSP would help actual farmers, including tenant farmers, who are not deprived of assistance under Rythu Bandhu scheme.
If the state government can provide additional bonus to the MSP announced by the Centre, it would be of a big help to the farmers.
Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president N Uttam Kumar Reddy said farmers need better facilities for farming and a good MSP for their produce, rather than alms from the government.
He promised that the Congress party, if voted to power in next elections, would bring the much needed turn around in the lives of entire farming community in the State.
Uttam promised that farmers would be given bonus in addition to the MSP for 17 major crops by setting up a Market Intervention Fund of Rs. 5,000 crore.
He alleged that the last four-and-a-half years of TRS regime proved disastrous for the farmers. Farmers neither got any support from the State or Central Government for farming, nor did they get good Minimum Support Price (MSP) for their produce.
The crop insurance was not implemented properly and no farmer got any compensation for the damage they suffered due to natural calamities like drought or unseasonal rains.
Situation turned so worse that more than 4,500 farmers committed suicide since the formation of Telangana State, he said.
Citing his observation during his visit to the market yards across the State, he said farmers remained neglected with literally no help coming from the authorities.
He said that the crop loan waiver scheme implemented by the TRS Government was faulty and it did not benefit any farmer.
The loan amount was split into four instalments and the government did not pay the additional interest amount incurred on loans. Consequently, farmers could not come out of their economic crisis and are still struggling hard for survival, he said.