Farmers reiterate demands of price, pension & prestige ahead of Budget Session

Bhubaneswar: While the State Assembly will meet from February 4 to pass the Interim Budget for 2019-20, the Naba Nirman Krushak Sangathan (NNKS) has threatened to go on an indefinite strike if the government fails to announce provisions in the budget for the Odisha farmers. Similar to the protests carried out in October-November last year, yet again lakhs of farmers under the aegis of NNKS have decided to hit the streets of Bhubaneswar to pressurise the government to fulfil their long-standing demands of price, pension and prestige.

Reportedly, the farming community has been demanding a security allowance of Rs 5000 per month for nearly 36 lakh farmers of the State with an annual budget allocation of Rs 21,600 crore.

Soon after a preparational meeting at Baradhari in Cuttack, NNKS convenor Akshay Kumar stated that around 3 lakh farmers from 30 districts will congregate on February 6 to gherao the Odisha Assembly if the Cabinet fails to allocate necessary funds for the farmers in the upcoming budget.

"We have been demanding a security allowance of Rs 5000 per month for 36 lakh farmers. If the government doesn't make any announcement on security allowance, again 36 lakh farmers will march towards Bhubaneswar to question the government," said Kumar.

Kumar had also stated that the State government has tried to divert the issue and their demands by implementing KALIA scheme. Despite forming ministerial level committees twice to resolve the issue, the government has not been able to take any concrete decision to look into our demands. Shockingly, the State government has tried to divert the issue by implementing ‘KALIA’ scheme,” Kumar had said.