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Declare Bundelkhand famine-hit: BJP

Photo: Subir Roy

Memo: A delegation of BJP led by Omprakash Singh handing over a memorandum to Governor T.V. Rajeswar in Lucknow on Monday on the drought situation in Budelkhand region.

LUCKNOW: The Bharatiya Janata Party has demanded that the drought-hit Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh be declared “famine-hit”.

Describing the crisis in Bundelkhand, which has received scanty rainfall in the past four years, as a human problem, the saffron party has said that strong remedial measures are needed to offset the possibility of the situation becoming precarious during the summer of 2008.

In a memorandum submitted to the State Governor, T. V. Rajeswar, here on Monday, the BJP pointed out that all seven districts of Bundelkhand had become synonymous with water crisis, foodgrain crisis, fodder crisis, multiplying debt burden on the farmers and malnutrition.

The BJP’s report card on the situation in Bundelkhand is based on inputs gathered by a five-member team of the BJP Legislature Party, led by its leader, Om Prakash Singh, which visited 69 villages. Talking to newspersons, Mr. Singh said about 90 per cent of the farmers in the region carried huge debts as a result of which even the local moneylenders had refused to give more money to them. Stating that the crisis had manifested itself in mass exodus from the region, the legislature party leader warned that if no action is taken by the Mayawati Government starvation deaths and suicide by debt-ridden farmers would become a normal feature from February next year.

Describing the measures taken by the Government as inadequate, Mr. Singh assailed the tendency to hide facts about starvation deaths and farmers’ suicides. He said a social problem in the form of parents unable to marry off their daughters also surfaced during the BJP team’s interaction with the people in Bundelkhand.

The BJP leader accused the State Government of treating the human problem in a casual manner and said it had failed to provide basic facilities to the depressed population of Bundelkhand. He urged the Union Government to clear the Central package demanded by the UP Government at the earliest.

He suggested that a 10-month foodgrains and health package be formulated by the Government without discriminating between people. .

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