Bargarh: Dubbing the ruling BJP as anti-farmer, opposition BJD Friday announced to hold a massive farmers’ rally in Bargarh August 18 to make them aware how the saffron party has been exploiting them. Addressing a press conference here, BJD farmers’ cell convenor Prasanna Acharya said the BJP governments both at the Centre and the state are working against the interest of farmers.
The state’s agricultural growth rate has dropped from 7.6 per cent in 2023–24 to just 3.8 per cent in 2024–25, Acharya claimed, adding that the overall central assistance to the state has declined by 18.19 per cent during this fiscal.
Allocation to Odisha for the agriculture sector has been slashed from Rs 21,011 crore in 2023-24 to Rs 17,089 crore in 2024- 25. While the state received Rs 146 crore under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) in 2023-24, it has come down to only Rs 32 crore in 2024-25, he claimed. Acharya also said the farmers in the state are annoyed over issues related to paddy procurement.
BJD vice-president Sanjay Das Burma alleged that the new paddy procurement registration rules — requiring legal heir certificates — are deterring farmers and being used as a tactic to avoid paying the promised Rs 800 per quintal input subsidy. Apart, the party alleged that farmers are being forced into distress sale as the Food Corporation of India (FCI) is not lifting the paddy on time. Acharya said BJD’s ‘Krushak Samabesh’ (farmers’ conventions) will be held across the state, with the first such protest set to be held in Bargarh August 18.