Telugu Desam will bring down power tariff, says Naidu
Staff Reporter
Party to create a 1,000-crore farmers’ fund
Demands Rs. 1,000 allowance for jobless youth
KANKIPADU (Krishna dist): Telugu Desam Party president N. Chandrababu Naidu has said that his party will reduce electricity tariff if voted to power.
He was addressing a gathering at Punadipadu in Kankipadu mandal near Vijayawada on Friday as part of his campaign to exert pressure on the Government for hiking the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for paddy to Rs. 1,000 a quintal from the existing Rs. 675 a quintal.
Without elaborating further on power tariff, Mr. Naidu devoted his speech to hitting out at the Government on the issues concerning farmers and MSP for paddy. He asserted that the TDP would create a Rs. 1,000-crore farmers’ fund, which would be utilised to mitigate their woes. It would also waive co-operative loans of the farmers if brought back to power. He demanded implementation of Rs. 2-a-kg-rice scheme immediately and payment of Rs. 1,000 unemployment allowance to jobless youth.
Neglected lot
Describing farmers as “the most neglected lot” under the Congress regime, he said that paddy was being cultivated in nearly 40 lakh acres across the State with each farmer investing almost Rs. 11,000 to Rs. 12,000 for each acre of cultivation.
In addition to adverse climatic conditions and pest attacks, the indifference of the Government was compounding their woes.
The prices of other crops like sugarcane, cotton and chilli had also crashed, pushing the farming community into a debt trap. “We will not rest until our demand to raise MSP for paddy is met and, if need be, we will not hesitate to storm the nation’s capital for the farmers’ cause,” he declared to a huge round of applause.
Criticising the economic reforms of the ruling Government, he said the fruits of the reforms were not reaching the poor and the needy. “TDP also implemented reforms but did not resort to corruption like the Congress,” he asserted.
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