Swabhimani Paksha leader Raju Shetti has warned that his party workers will take to the streets if the government fails to complete crop damage assessments by November 5. Mr. Shetti said said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Shiv Sena are absorbed in their “power games” instead of focusing on the losses suffered by farmers due to post-monsoon showers.
Mr. Shetti said, “The Chief Minister ought to have directed his administration to expedite the damage assessment process a week ago. Unless authorities visit fields and complete this process, the farmers cannot commence sowing for the Rabi season.” He said the showers had wreaked havoc, causing massive damage to farmland, ruining onion, grape, soybean and rice crops.
He said farmers in certain areas had suffered losses as high as ₹2 to ₹2.5 lakh per hectare of grape crop. “Be it Konkan, north or western Maharashtra, and the Marathwada region, farmers have had to endure tremendous losses in virtually every part of the State. However, not one officer has shown any inclination to do panchnamas . Instead political leaders are immersed in their Deepavali victory celebrations or jockeying for power,” alleged Mr. Shetti.
He said the horticulture farmers had been hit the hardest and accused district administrations and crop insurance companies of dragging their feet over conducting panchnamas .
Mr. Shetti, who allied with the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in the Lok Sabha polls and the Assembly polls, said the major opposition parties also have not displayed earnestness in addressing the issues of farmers. The Swabhimani Paksha chief said, “This [Assembly] election was not fought on farmers’ issues. The glaring neglect of farmers’ problems by the ruling parties is obvious by their delayed response to the plight of farmers whose life investments have been ruined by the post-monsoon rain.”
Mr. Shetti’s party was able to win only one seat in the Assembly polls. The lone winning candidate, Devendra Bhuyar, managed to stage a major upset by defeating State Agriculture Minister Anil Bonde in Morshi in Amravati district. Mr. Bhuyar, a farmers’ activist, was fired at and beaten by miscreants on polling day. His vehicle was torched.
Mr. Shetti said, “I am satisfied that our candidate, who has been a tireless campaigner of farmers’ rights for years, has won this poll while literally battling against an apathetic State administration… even when he [Mr. Bhuyar] was attacked and beaten on polling day, the police had initially delayed filing an FIR, even going to the length of accusing us of staging the incident.” Mr. Shetti said the incident only served to prove the insensitivity of the ruling government towards farmers and their leaders.
