Farmers rally to protest massive industralisation in Orissa

Bhubaneswar, Oct 17 (UNI) Protesting against massive industrialisation in Orissa by the ruling BJD-BJP government, thousands of farmers will congregate here on October 27 to voice their concern.

Under the aegis of the Orissa unit of the Bharatiya Kissan Sangh (BKS), the farmers would come out to the street in protest against the state government's massive industrialisation at the cost of the agriculture.

BKS state unit General Secretary Prafulla Chandra Das told newsmen here today that about 50,000 farmers from across the state would march the street here on Ocrober 27 in support of their 21-point of demands.

He said the government instead of providing irrigation to the land and encouraging agriculture based economy, was giving much emphasis on rapid industralisation which is likely to cause immense loss to the agricultural production.

Mr Das said agriculture based economy is likely to suffer a major setback as the state government has promised all the industrial houses to provide water from Mahanadi, Brahmini rivers, Hirakud Dam and Taladanda canal.

He demanded that the water from these rivers and the Hirakud dam should not be provided to the industrial houses and urged the Parliament Members to spend fifty per cent of their local area development fund on the irrigation and power generation.

This apart, the BKS demanded waiving of agriculture loan, free seed to the farmers and lower the interest rate on agricultural loan to four per cent in all the Cooperative Banks.

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