Movement to ensure relief to farmers: BJP

Itanagar, Sep 10: The BJP Kisan Morcha has decided to intensify its movement for ensuring proper relief to the farmers of the country, including those who have been affected by floods and other natural calamities, national secretary of the Morcha Rahvender Sharma informed here today.

Mr Sharma, also the BJP in-charge of the North-Eastern region, is on a two-day visit to Arunachal Pradesh to take stock of the activities undertaken in the farming sector for welfare of the farmers of the state.

''A strategy has to be drawn to pressurise the government to show more concern towards the farmers' plight throughout the country,'' Mr Sharma said, while referring to the more than one lakh farmers who had committed suicide after not being able to pay back their loans as their crops had failed due to drought or floods.

Accusing the Centre of doing nothing to redress the grievances of the farmers, he criticised Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar for 'turning a deaf ear to the plight of the farmers'.

He also pointed out the urgent need to address the problems facing the masses who were hard hit by the government's alleged failure to contain the price rise of essential commodities.

Disclosing the party's plans to gear up for the general elections due next year, Mr Sharma said the BJP would target corruption in the state, while the main agenda for BJP would be price rise and Indo-US nuclear deal.

Expressing dismay over the condition of people living in the villages of Arunachal Pradesh during his maiden visit to the state, he said the responsibility lay on the state government for ensuring that development percolates down to the grass-roots.

He also said the Arunachal unit of the BJP would not entertain those who were denied tickets by other parties for the coming elections.

''Party karyakartas would be given first preference while issuing tickets,'' he said.

Commenting on infiltration problem facing the region, the BJP leader voiced concern that the Centre was not taking the problem seriously, which had reached alarming levels especially in Assam and threatening to bring about demographic changes in the region.

UNI