Naidu on indefinite fast

Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N Chandrababu Naidu went on an indefinite fast on Friday seeking better compensation to farmers whose crops had been damaged in the recent floods and heavy rains caused by a depression in the Bay of Bengal.

Naidu is demanding a compensation of Rs 10,000 an acre of paddy crop and Rs 15,000 an acre of commercial crops damaged, while the relief package announced by the state government was Rs 6,000 a hectare that works out to Rs 2,400 per acre.

In support of their leader, over 10 TDP legislators and many senior leaders sat on a relay hunger strike. The party cadre across the state also organised relay hunger strike camps to express solidarity.

Communist Party of India general secretary, AB Bardhan, said a state-wide bandh would be observed if the government did not respond to Naidu's demands within four days.

Besides payment of compensation for crop loss, the state government announced interest waiver on the outstanding crop loans of Rs 16,500 crore. The total relief package is estimated to cost the state exchequer Rs 910 crore, including Rs 310 crore towards interest waiver.

The TDP chief, however, said this was not enough to mitigate the plight of the flood-affected farmers, who have incurred a huge loss. “The farmers faced nature’s fury at least five times in the last one year. The loss was colossal but the central and state governments have failed to come to their rescue,” he said.

Leaders of the ruling Congress and other parties in the state described Naidu's hunger strike as a “drama” aimed at garnering political mileage. They pointed out that Naidu had neglected farmers and the agriculture sector when he was the chief minister for nine years.