Amaravati, Sep 17 (SocialNews.XYZ) Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and YSR Congress Party President YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said on Thursday that negligence by Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has worsened the intensity of the severe drought in the state.
YS Jagan held a video conference with YSRCP Regional Coordinators and District Presidents and reviewed the drought conditions, crop losses, water scarcity and the hardships being faced by farmers across the State.
“This is not merely a natural drought. The Chief Minister’s failure to respond in time has made the situation more serious,” a party release quoted him as saying.
He stated that Chandrababu had warned about El Nino on February 4, but took no follow-up action. Despite continuous rainfall deficits in June, July and August, the government failed to declare drought-hit mandals, arrange alternative seeds, supply fodder or seek additional workdays from the Centre under the (VB-G RAM G) scheme, he said.
“The State is not suffering from the El Nino effect, but from the ‘Yellow Nino effect’,” he remarked in an obvious reference to the colour of TDP’s flag.
YS Jagan said the State had recorded a rainfall deficit of more than 51 per cent from the beginning of the Kharif season until September 16. Nearly 628 of the 688 mandals were facing drought-like conditions, while around 332 mandals were experiencing severe drought.
Against the normal Kharif cultivation area of 76 lakh acres, crops were sown in only 56.4 lakh acres. Nearly 20 lakh acres remained unsown, he said.
He claimed that farmers who trusted the government’s assurances and began cultivation suffered losses ranging from Rs 15,000 to Rs 30,000 per acre. Red gram, cotton, groundnut, maize, paddy and fruit orchards were severely affected.
He accused the government of wasting Srisailam water on power generation instead of supplying it to Rayalaseema. He also criticised Chandrababu’s silence over Telangana’s lift projects near Pulichintala and alleged that the government was compromising on Polavaram’s full storage capacity. “When the rainfall deficit was clearly visible, the government remained busy switching on pumps, lifting gates and posing for photographs,” he said.
YS Jagan demanded the immediate declaration of drought-hit mandals, rescheduling of farmers’ loans and restoration of free crop insurance. He sought compensation of Rs 15,000 per acre for unsown land and Rs 25,000 per acre for damaged crops, besides Rs 6,000 crore towards input subsidy.
He demanded payment of Rs 41,000 in pending Annadata Sukhibhava assistance, restoration of zero-interest loans, fodder distribution, 150 additional workdays and uninterrupted power supply. He also sought drinking water through free tankers and an 80 per cent subsidy on tanker costs to save fruit orchards.
YS Jagan directed party leaders to visit drought-affected areas, meet farmers, submit district-specific demands and pressure the government to provide immediate relief. He said he would also tour the affected regions based on the severity of the situation.
YSRCP State Coordinator Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy, MP P.V. Midhun Reddy, MLC Lella Appi Reddy, former Minister Kurasala Kannababu, senior leader Sake Sailajanath, State General Secretary (Agriculture) M.V.S. Nagi Reddy and Agriculture Wing President Ginnuri Rama Rao, former MLA TJR Sudhakar Babu were among others who participated in the video conference.
Source: IANS
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