Karnataka - Gulbarga   

Farmers withdraw agitation

Showing concern: Labour and Employment Minister M. Mallikarjun Kharge speaking to a farmer who is undergoing treatment at the Government General Hospital in Gulbarga on Saturday. Six farmers were admitted to hospital after they attempted suicide on Friday.

Gulbarga: The Gulbarga District Raitha Horata Samiti withdrew its indefinite fast on Saturday evening after Jewargi tahsildar D.Y. Patil assured them that the procurement of red gram that started on Saturday would continue till the last arrival of red gram to the market and more number of procurement centres would be established.

The samiti was demanding the Government's intervention in the market to stabilise the prices of red gram and payment of compensation to the farmers who had lost their crops due to the supply of fake seeds. To pressure the Government to concede their demand, samiti president Kedarlingaiah Hiremath launched an indefinite fast on January 31.

After Mr Hiremath was shifted to the Basaveshwar Teaching and General Hospital on Friday night following deterioration of his health, five other farmers of the samiti launched the indefinite fast in front of the tahsildar's office in Jewargi town.

The tahsildar along with the local BJP leaders held a discussion with the agitating farmers and members of the samiti. Procurement centres were opened in Jewargi, Gulbarga and Chitapur taluk headquarters on Saturday and direct purchase of red gram at Rs. 4,000 a quintal had begun. The authorities at the procurement centres were not insisting on grading of red gram at the time of purchase. However, there has been a lukewarm response from the farmers because the price of red gram in wholesale market shot up to Rs. 4,200 on Saturday.

Kharge visit

Union Minister for Labour and Employment M. Mallikarjun Kharge visited the Government General Hospital in Gulbarga on Saturday and spoke to the farmers undergoing treatment there. He also visited Basaveshwar Teaching and General Hospital where president of the Gulbarga District Raitha Horata Samiti Kedarlingaiah Hiremath is undergoing treatment in the Intensive Care Unit.

He said the State Government has to be blamed for the condition of the farmers. According to him, the State Government should have honoured its decision taken in the Cabinet on January 17 to open procurement centres to purchase red gram directly from farmers at Rs. 4,000 a quintal. The Government had retracted from its decision by publishing a government order on February 2 which stated that market intervention would be possible only when the price of red gram is below Rs. 3,000 a quintal, he added.

He also spoke to District Surgeon Sarojini Minch who told him that the condition of six farmers was stable. However, six more farmers were undergoing treatment in Jewargi Government Hospital.

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