Farmers call to boycott Republic Day in drought-hit Chhattisgarh

The state-based Chhattisgarh Progressive Farmers' Association The state-based Chhattisgarh Progressive Farmers' Association

Farmer’s bodies in Chhattisgarh have called for boycotting the official programmes of the Republic Day on Tuesday, in protest against the state government's alleged callous attitude in dealing with the drought situation.

The state-based Chhattisgarh Progressive Farmers’ Association had given the call and asked the farmers’ community to stay away from the official programmes on Republic Day. The association The state-based Chhattisgarh Progressive Farmers’ Association.

“Following the apathy of the Chhattisgarh government, drought-hit farmers are forced to commit suicide,” Rajkumar Gupta and I M Gupta, office bearers of the association, said. As of now, 55 farmers have ended their life following crop failure due to scanty rains, they added.

The state government had officially declared 117 of the 150 tehsils as drought-hit. Besides converting the short-term loans for kharif season 2015 into medium-term, the state government announced that the loan interest would be waived for farmers in drought-affected areas of the state as part of the initiatives taken for the farmers’ relief.

“The farmers wanted to waive the loan capital and not the interest,” the association office bearers said. 

The state government should immediately announce monetary relief, they said, adding that the farmers across the state have been appealed to boycott the programmes organised by the ministers, members of Parliament, legislators and others to officially mark the Republic Day.