Jagan ends Rythu Deeksha, blasts govt for neglecting farmers

Kadapa MP Ys Jaganmohan Reddy on Tuesday symbolically ended his 48-hour ‘Rythu Deeksha’ by taking lime juice offered by a farmer Venkata Subbaiah of Sattenapalli.

The two-day long hunger fast, launched at the YSR Rythu Pranganam, was designed to highlight the farmers’ demand of Minimum Support Price for their produce. Mr Venkata Subbaiah had faced a loss of Rs 5 lakh loss in Kharif season.

Later addressing the gathering, Mr Jaganmohan Reddy said that it was time that the Centre and state government open their eyes to the problems faced by the farmers. He demanded immediate announcement of MSP for crops so that the uncertainty faced by farmers ends.

The Kadapa MP pointed that during his late father’s rule, the MSP for paddy was raised from Rs 530 to over Rs 1000. “This resulted in a growth of about 6 per cent in the agriculture produce,” he said.

Mr Jaganmohan Reddy, fresh from his resounding victory in the by-elections for the Lok Sabha seat, lashed out at the government, saying that the input subsidy announced has not reached the farmers yet.

He added that, “the government has no intention of implementing the welfare schemes launched by Dr YSR, nor has it any willingness to work in the favour of farmers in the state.”

Turning his attention to his bitter critic and Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu, the Kaadapa MP said that Mr Naidu’s has no sympathy with the farmers but is only raising the issue to gain political benefits.

Mr Jaganmohan Reddy also alleged that Mr Naidu was eyeing the political pie through the farmers’ problems. “How can a former chief minister who had once said described agriculture as a ‘waste’, now notice the problems faced by the farmers? This is nothing but opportunism at best,” the Kadapa leader said.

Anaka Palli MP Sabbam Hari, MP Nellore Mekapati Raja Mohan Reddy, MLC Pulla Padmavathi, MLC Jupudi Prabhakar, MLA Konda Surekha, Macharla MLA Pinnelli Ramakrishna Reddy, Chilakaluripet MLA Marri Raja Sekhar, Parttipadu MLA Mekatoti Sucharika, former Vijayawada Mayor Tadi Skuntala, Guntur former MLA Challa Venkata Krishna Reddy, Jaggayya Pet Govt Chief Whip and former MLA Saamineni Udaya Bhanu, former MLA Janga Krishna Murthy, former MP Marappa, former Minister Makineni Peda Rattayya, former MLA Gattu Ramachandra Rao, former PCC secretary Ambati Rambabu, former  minister Balineni Srinivas Reddy, KVL Shanti , former MLA Tippa Reddy, Marri Raja, Lakshmi Parvathi, Dalita Leader Katti PadmaRao, former MLC  Rehman, Vasi Reddy Padma, Bhuma Karunakar Reddy, Parttipadu former MLA Ramana, YV Subba Reddy, former Tenali MLA Raavi Ravindra, former MLC Devapudi Prabhakar Rao and others were the leaders present in the Ys Jaganmohan Reddy Rythu Deeksha.