Farmers discuss key issues at convention

Tribune News Service

Haridwar, June 10

The Thakur Bhanu Pratap Singh faction under the aegis of Bharatiya Kissan Union discussed various issues related with peasant community here today.

The convention discussed the issues ranging from drought, hailstorm, flood and delay in sugarcane payment by state governments. Bharatiya Kissan Union (Bhanu) president Thakur Bhanu Pratap Singh while addressing the peasants, said unity among farmers was the need of hour.

Bhanu cited the farmer suicide cases and said this reflected the apathy of respective political parties and governments as in past five years, lakhs of farmers had ended their lives. Governments had failed to provide them adequate compensation and facilities.

“Bad loans to corporates are being waived while farmers are forced to pay their loans even when drought and other natural calamities are impacting their crops and agricultural production. It seems that the Central government is pro-corporate and anti-farmer. During the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, PM Narendra Modi had assured farmers of addressing their woes,” said Pratap.

Kissan union general secretary Chaudhari Vijay Singh Shahrawat said after the change of the government at the Centre we had a lot of expectations from the Modi government but it has not done much.

He told the farmers to unite before the upcoming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Punjab and vote for political party which assured to address farmers issues.

Uttarakhand unit president Surendra Kumar said though the state government last year had directed sugar mills to disburse the payment of sugarcane farmers but sugar mills did not oblige the farmers.