Activists of the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) staged a protest here on Wednesday, condemning the alleged failure of the Union and the State governments to address the problems faced by farmers.
Addressing the protest meet, K.T. Gangadhar, working president of KRRS, said that although the farmers in Karnataka were facing hardship due to drought, both the Union and State governments had not come to their rescue.
The State government had failed to assess the loss suffered due to drought. There was a delay from the Union government in releasing funds for taking up relief measures in the drought-affected areas, he said.
Mr. Gangadhar blamed the failure to evolve a mechanism to fix remunerative price for agricultural produce as the reason for the spate of farmers’ suicides in Karnataka. The loans taken by farmers from nationalised and cooperative banks in drought-hit areas should be waived, he said.The protesters raised slogans, demanding the Union government to intervene in the dispute over the sharing of Mahadayi water and protect the interests of farmers of Karnataka.
The protesters blocked National Highway 206 for 30 minutes. Functionaries of KRRS H.P. Rudreshappa and Parameshwarappa took part in the protest.
In Hassan
Blaming the State and Union governments for farmers’ suicides, Hassan district units of Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha and Hasiru Sene staged a protest on the Bengaluru-Mangaluru national highway, near Boovanahalli in Hassan taluk. As a result, vehicles plying on the highway were stranded for half-an-hour on Wednesday. The protesters alleged that anti-farmer policies of the governments were the reason for farmers’ suicides in the country.
Vehicles on the busy highway were stopped for half-an-hour, as the protesters staged a dharna on the stretch. The protesters raised slogans against the State and the Union governments. Failure to address the problems faced by the farming sector had led to the suicides. Although hundreds of farmers had committed suicide, the government had not initiated measures to instil confidence among farmers, they said.
They alleged that the State government had failed to provide electricity to farmers, make owners of sugar factories pay the dues to cane growers and implement the various pending irrigation projects.Kottur Srinivas, Siddaiah and others led the protest. Meanwhile, the police arrested the protesters to clear the traffic on the road and released them, later.
In Mandya
About 50 members of the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) and Hasiru Sene were arrested here on Wednesday for blocking the Bengaluru-Mysuru highway, near Sir M. Visvesvaraya statue, seeking fulfilment of their demands.
They were also protesting against the alleged anti-farmer policies of the Union and State governments.
The farmers, who launched an indefinite agitation on September 26 near the statue, squatted on the highway and raised slogans against the governments for not addressing the problems the farming community.They urged initiating measures to waive all crop loans, revive the government-run Mysore Sugar Company Ltd., stop releasing Cauvery waters to Tamil Nadu, fix remunerative prices for agricultural produce, implement the Kalasa-Banduri Nala project and introduce a new agricultural policy to safeguard farmers’ interest.
Vehicular movement on the highway came to a grinding halt following the protest.
Police officials requested the agitators to clear the highway. In spite of repeated requests, the protesters did not withdraw their agitation by blocking the road. The police arrested and released them later.
Shambhunahalli Suresh, Konasale Narasaraju, Bommegowda, Keelaghatta Nanjundaiah and Chandrashekar led the protest.
