Mumbai: Farmers in the State are planning to go their first strike ever from June 1, and will not sell their produce in markets unless farm loans are waived off and a Minimum Support Price (MSP) is guaranteed.
They are also facing the prospect of not getting loans from the District Central Co-operative Banks (DCCB) ahead of the kharif season, as these banks still have deposits worth ₹2,772 crore in demonetised ₹500 and ₹1,000 notes. With interests mounting and Central and State governments yet to take a decision, these banks, which were the backbone of the State’s farm credit system, are on the verge of collapse.
Swati Pande, CEO, Maharashtra State Cooperative Banks Association, said, “Both banks and farmers are suffering. The RBI must act to decide on the cash with DCCBs immediately.”
Despite desperate attempts by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, farmers’ body Shetkari Sanghatana is calling farmers to participate in the strike by passing a resolution at the local panchayat level.
“Let people outside villages know the plight of farmers. Let them face the heat that we are facing,” Kalidas Apet, executive president, Shetkari Sanghatana, said. “We are continuing with the strike. Those who wanted to back out have already done so. The farming community’s demands include a rollback of the ban on export of farm produce.
The farmers’ strike could be the least of the BJP-led State government’s worries, as Lok Sabha MP and Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana (SSS) leader Raju Shetty’s ‘self-appeal’ yatra to protest ‘anti-farmer’ policies reached Mumbai on Sunday. The SSS is a part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and one of its leaders is a State minister. The yatra set out from Pune with 4,000 farmers, and is scheduled to reach the Raj Bhavan on May 30 to demand a waiver on farm loans.
“Voting for BJP was the worst possible mistake made by us,” Mr. Shetty said. “Each and every promise made by Narendra Modi before the Lok Sabha polls has been violated. Last three years have been the worst for farmers.”
