Rythu Swarajya Vedika (RSV), an NGO working on farmers’ issues, asked the State government to examine the recent crop loss immediately. It also released a fact sheet in which it claimed that no crop loss compensation has reached farmers for the last few years.
Speaking to reporters here on Saturday, RSV representatives Vissa Kiran Kumar, Kannegnati Ravi, B. Kondal Reddy, T. Sreeharsha and Dalit Bahujan Front leader P. Shankar said that farmers suffered huge crop loss due to the rains and it was high time that governments come forward to rescue them.
There has been extensive damage to crops such as cotton, maize, soybean and red gram, due to recent heavy rains, overflowing streams and water bodies. Preliminary reports from government officials indicated damage in 11 lakh acres across the State. In Adilabad district alone, officials estimated 1.03 lakh acres of crop loss, whereas the preliminary estimate is 34,000 acres in Mancherial, 45,000 acres in Asifabad, 32,600 acres in Bhupalpally and 25,200 acres in Bhadradri-Kothagudem, they said.
“RSV activists fought two cases in the Telangana High Court in the past four years on crop loss compensation for farmers, and received favourable judgments. Despite this, disaster relief from the State government is not much. RSV has unearthed a lot of information and documents about the action and inaction of the governments regarding disaster relief in Telangana,” said Mr. Kiran Kumar.
It is not right to say that the Centre did not provide disaster relief funds to Telangana. About ₹400 crore is being given every year by the Centre to SDRF. The State government did not utilise adequate funds, they added.
