Cong forum seeks white paper on K’handi farmer schemes

The Pioneer, Sept 2, 2012

The Kisan Khet Mazdoor Sangh of the Congress has demanded a white paper on the various Government-sponsored schemes meant for the farmers and the money spent on the schemes.

The Government must tell the people what it did with the money provided by the Central Government over the last several years," said Kisan Khet Mazdoor Sangh president Amiya Pattnaik.

The Sangh threatened to demonstrate before the Collectorate, if the Government fails to bring out the white paper by October. After discussing with the farmers in the Congress Bhawan here, Pattnaik told news reporters at a Press conference that crop insurance, crop loan, flood assistance, provision of fertiliser and seed were the issues taken up for discussion.

Pattnaik demanded setting up of a special grievance cell for the farmers in each block. He said even though the Central Government provided crores of rupees under the National Krishi Vikash Mission, the State failed to implement it.

Giving details, he said the Centre provided 5, 80, 00 MT fertiliser to the State. Kalahandi required 58,000 MT but the State Government could provide only 35,123 MT. In 2011, out of 86,752 crop insured farmers in Kalahandi, 24,533 farmers were deprived of the insured sum.

The farmers complained that they have not been given identity card by the administration. The 2010 flood assistance of Rs150 crore is still lying unspent in Collectorate, said Pattnaik.

Pattnaik alleged that the State had a stock of 4,593 MT fertilisers in its godown but it sold off the fertilisers at higher prices this year, disregarding the need and concern of the farmers. He said had the stock of fertiliser been sold at the previous price to the farmers, they would have been greatly benefited.

Pattnaik said the State Government never heeded to the farmers’ plight. On the seed issue, he said 59, 000 quintals of seed were required in Kalalhandi, but the Government provided only 50,000 quintals to the farmers. He also charged that in Odisha during the last 12 years of BJD rule, 2,972 farmers have committed suicide.

Sangh office bearers Himanshu Sekhar Das, Santanu Behera, Ayub Ali Khan, Kumar Mani Sabar, Devi Prasad Sindoor and Jugal Bag were present.