Hyderabad, May 12: TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu has demanded that the Andhra Pradesh government immediately release a market intervention fund of Rs 1,000 crore for purchasing paddy, subabul, pulses and other agricultural produce from farmers.
He also wanted the Union Government to lift the ban on cotton exports to enable farmers get remunerative price. The Tobacco Board, under the Union Commerce Ministry, should release funds from its Rs 350 crore corpus, for procuring tobacco stocks from farmers in Andhra Pradesh.
Addressing a press conference at the TDP headquarters NTR Bhavan here today, Chandrababu said he would soon meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to represent the farmers? grievances and seek their intervention for redressing them.
Chandrababu, who returned from a two-day tour of Prakasam and Guntur districts where he interacted with farmers to study their problems, lashed out at Chief Minister K Rosaiah for remaining indifferent to the farmers’ plight.
“Farmers are about to revolt as they are in no position to overcome their problems. Don’t drive them to such a situation,” the TDP president cautioned.
He wanted the state government to immediately convene an all-party meeting to discuss the farmers’ issues and devise an action plan to tide over the crisis.
–Agencies