Hyderabad: The Congress manifesto for the 2023 Legislative Assembly elections in Telangana will have a special focus on farming issues, said party leader and Lok Sabha member of Parliament (MP) Rahul Gandhi here on Thursday. The manifesto be prepared after extensive consultations with all stakeholders, top party leaders, stated Gandhi.
The Congress MP, who resumed his ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ in Telangana after a four-day Diwali break, had an interaction with farmers and farmers’ representatives from different parts of the state. He assured cancellation of Dharani portal if the Congress party comes to power in Telangana.
Representatives of various farmers’ organizations met Rahul Gandhi and apprised him of the problems faced by the farmers. The leader urged farmers’ organisations to cooperate in the struggle against the current problems in the country.
Rahul Gandhi during his walk discussed the issues of crop insurance and quality farmers. All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary Jayaram Ramesh, Telangana CLP leader Bhatti Vikramarka, Nalgonda MP Uttam Kumar Reddy, ex-MP Yashki Gowd, Balram Naik, and other leaders were present on this occasion.
The suicides of tenant farmers, lack of crop insurance and disaster relief, and problems concerning the ‘Dharani’ land records portal in Telangana were discussed, Jairam Ramesh said. He claimed that 6500 farmers have died in Telangana to date in 2014 and added that the ‘Dharani’ portal introduced by the ruling TRS government has caused huge losses to the farmers.
“@RahulGandhi also promised that the Congress manifesto for the upcoming Assembly elections in Telangana will have a very sharp focus on farming issues and will be prepared after the widest possible consultations with all stakeholders,” former union minister, Jairam Ramesh tweeted.
Observing that 30 percent of peasants in the state are tenant farmers and they account for 80 percent of suicides since 2014, Ramesh alleged that the TRS government has failed miserably to provide any relief to bereaved families.
“Since Kharif 2020, Telangana does not have any crop insurance scheme nor has it given any compensation for disasters through the 2005 NDMA (National Disaster Management) Act. This has deprived lakhs of farmers of compensation when there is crop loss, the frequency of which has increased due to climate change,” Jairam Ramesh claimed.
Rahul Gandhi assured tenant farmers that those who till the land must be registered and get the full benefit of government schemes, including bank loans, direct income transfer, and crop insurance. His ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ resumed from Yeligandla in the Narayanpet district of Telangana on Friday and is expected to cover a distance of 23.3 km, Congress party sources said.
The Yatra will halt at Mahabubnagar tonight. This is the third day of the Yatra in the state. It kicked-off at 6.30 AM from Makthal with state Congress president A Revanth Reddy, MP Uttam Kumar Reddy, CLP leader Bhatti Vikramarka and a number of party leaders joining Gandhi.Gandhi who left for the national capital on October 23, landed here last night and left for Gudebellur by road.
The Yatra is expected to enter Maharashtra on November 7. It will take a one-day break on November 4. The Wayanad MP will meet intellectuals, and leaders of various communities, including personalities from the sporting, business, and entertainment sectors.
Rahul gandhi will also visit prayer halls, mosques, and temples across Telangana, and will offer prayers, members of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee said. The ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ commenced on September 7 from Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu.
Gandhi completed the marathon walk in Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka, before beginning the Telangana leg of the yatra.
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