Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress to seek aid for flood-hit farmers

Mumbai

Putting up a united face ahead of their proposed alliance, a delegation of Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and Congress will call on Governor B. S. Koshyari later this afternoon seeking relief measures for the farmers affected by unseasonal rains and floods in the state, here on Saturday.

NCP national spokesperson Nawab Malik said that the delegation will apprise the governor how after the state was brought under President’s Rule, the administration has virtually been paralysed.

“The outgoing government had announced Rs.10,000 crore compensation to the farmers, and now after burning their damaged/destroyed crops, they are getting ready for the next sowing. But they have not got any relief or crop loans so far,” Malik informed mediapersons.

Besides, applications made by patients suffering from various ailments have not moved ahead and they continue to suffer, he added.

At the joint meeting of the Sena-NCP-Congress on Thursday, the three parties decided to call on the Governor and urged him to kickstart the dormant official machinery on priority.

This is the first time the three parties are meeting the Governor jointly, though all have earlier called on Koshyari separately, besides the Bharatiya Janata Party’s former Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who met him at least thrice and requested him (Governor) to release funds for the farmers.

Fadnavis also stressed upon the need to reopen and ensure the smooth functioning of the CM Relief Fund to ensure timely help to needy people as the state is now under central rule.

Currently, leaders of Sena, NCP and Congress are on tour in different parts of the state to assess the damage due to the ‘wet-drought’ hitting Vidarbha and other regions.

After his tour in Vidarbha, NCP President Sharad Pawar said that huge losses are suffered by farmers of orange, foodgrains, cotton, soyabean, and jowar.

He also said he would raise the issue in the winter session of Parliament starting in New Delhi from Monday and demand maximum compensation for the affected peasants.

Visiting ravaged farmlands in Sangli and Satara on Friday Sena President Uddhav Thackeray slammed the Rs.10,000 per hectare compensation announced by Fadnavis and said it should be raised to minimum Rs.25,000 per hectare, besides assuring that he would waive off all debts of state farmers.

According to official estimates, the unseasonal rains in the state in the past few days have rendered crops on over 54,00,000 hectares in some 325 sub-districts as useless. (IANS)