The Tamizhaga Cauvery Vivasayigal Sangam has urged the State government to make suitable amendments in the Tamil Nadu Agricultural Produce and Livestock Contract Farming and Services (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2019 to safeguard interests of farmers.
In a resolution passed at its State committee meeting held at Mannargudi under the chairmanship of the general secretary, P.R.Pandian on Tuesday, the association said sugarcane farmers were undergoing severe hardship under contract farming with sugar mills.
Under these circumstances, exposing small and medium farmers to contract farming with multi-national companies would be disastrous.
Instead of forcing farmers to tie up with private companies, the association suggested that the State government could enter into contract farming with farmers for agriculture and horticulture produce and have a tie up with the multi-national companies for marketing the same. It would ensure profitable income to farmers.
In another resolution, the association objected to the government violating irrigation norms. Measures such as diversion of irrigation water to ayacuts in upper riparian areas without fulfilling requirements of lower riparian areas in a river system or taking up irrigation development work in upper riparian areas without consulting farmers of lower riparian area would result in friction among farmers.
However, it thanked the government for constituting the Tamil Nadu Water Resources Conservation and Rivers Restoration Corporation.
It also passed resolutions urging the government to construct a dam at Rasimanal, fill vacant posts in Public Works Department, shifting of Cauvery Technical Committee office to a safe place in Chennai, commence ‘kudimaramathu’ work in February 2020, put in place proper mechanism to ensure that water for irrigation for next ‘kuruvai’ season be released from Mettur dam on June 12, 2020 and check illegal sand mining in rivers.
