Farmers Movement Archive

Farmer outfits warn govt., Oppn. to stop ‘silly politics’

The ‘political soap opera’ being played out between Union Minister Narayan Rane and Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was nothing but ‘a ploy’ on the part of the ruling and Opposition politicos to divert attention from vital issues affecting farmers, former MP and farmer leader Raju Shetti has alleged. Mr. Shetti, who heads the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana (SSS), chastised both the Central and the State governments while pointing out that farmers were protesting the import of genetically modified soybean and the crashing prices of tomatoes. The former MP said that he was planning a major protest on September 1 in Kolhapur to demand recompense for farmers whose croplands had been destroyed in the recent floods and the unseasonal rains last year. The SSS’ protest, named ‘Panchganga Parikrama’ would see Mr. Shetti and his activists attempting water immersion.He also hit out at the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices for recommending that the Centre increase the fair and remunerative price for sugar cane growers by a mere Rs. 50 a quintal. The Left-affiliated All-India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) also warned that it would stage massive protests in front of the residences of the leaders of both the ruling and Opposition parties if they continued to waste time on ‘non-issues’. “Maharashtra’s tomato growers have fallen on hard times once again. So much so, that even transporting the vegetable to the market is proving to be a loss-making trip for the average farmer, who is forced to sell his produce at Rs. 1 or Rs. 2 a kilo. At a time when farmers are in the throes of such a grave crisis, we warn both the MVA and the BJP leadership to stop playing silly politics on non-issues [alluding to the Rane-Thackeray spat],” Ajit Nawale of the AIKS said.

The Hindu

2021-08-31

Pune