Declare MP as drought-hit, waive farmer loans, demands Scindia

He said, not a single minister, bureaucrat or patwari had reached them despite the claims of the state government that all top officials were deployed to assess the drought situation

Congress Chief Whip in Lok Sabha, Jyotiraditya Scindia has demanded that entire Madhya Pradesh be declared as drought-hit and asked the ruling BJP in the state to waive farmers loans as done by Congress President Sonia Gandhi during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) rule.

"The government should declare entire state drought-hit and waive-off farmer loans. It should learn a lesson from the Congress President who waived-off Rs 72,000 crore dues of farmers during UPA rule when they were in crisis," Scindia said addressing a rally of farmers here last evening which is a part of his Guna constituency.

He warned that if five demands raised by farmers -- declaring entire state drought-hit, waiving farm loans and electricity bills, distribution of seeds and fertilisers for rabi season free of cost; and starting relief works in the affected areas -- are not met, he will be compelled to intensify this agitation in the other parts of the state.

Scindia was holding a rally on a day when the BJP government had called a special session of the Vidhan Sabha to sanction a supplementary budget of over Rs 8,000 crore for providing enhanced relief to drought-hit farmers.

Referring to suicides committed by farmers, Scindia said he had personally visited family members of those farmers who took the extreme step to console them.

However, he alleged that not a single minister, bureaucrat or patwari had reached them despite the claims of the state government that all top officials were deployed to assess the drought situation.