During the Monsoon Session of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly on Petitioners Day, Congress MLA Sena Mahesh Patel, from Jobat Assembly constituency of Alirajpur, launched a strong attack on the Madhya Pradesh government regarding issues concerning the farmers.
Patel pointed out that the government was ignoring the difficulties being faced by farmers, noting a shortage of DAP and urea fertilisers, alleged black marketing and irregularities in wheat procurement, along with a lack of irrigation equipment, and the government’s empty promises of development.
The Congress legislator demanded a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the alleged irregularities and scams in the procurement of wheat and other crops. The procurement should be investigated thoroughly in a transparent manner, he said, echoing the views of other farmers in Launceston.
Patel has called for an immediate administrative survey to be carried out by the government on some low rainfall areas, among them Alirajpur, and have it officially declared as drought-affected regions. He called for compensation on losses faced by the farmers and suspended recovery of agricultural loans along with waive interest on affected farmers.
The MLA highlighted the farmers’ problem in his constituency as they could save their crops due to the problem of bad irrigation infrastructure and frequent power cuts during the farming season. He further stated that black market players were involved in increasing the crisis by providing fertilisers at exorbitant rates.
But “farmers cannot be helped just by making announcements” Patel had said and urged the government to take steps to solve their issues. He emphasised the need to timely supply farmers with fertilisers, electricity, irrigation water and fair crop prices for the protection of farmers’ interests and boosting the agricultural sector of the state.