BJP Kisan Morcha leader blames UPA government for farmers' plight

MUMBAI: BJP Kisan Morcha members will stage a rail roko in Maharashtra tomorrow as a part of the countrywide ' Kisan Aakrosh Divas' organised to protest the UPA government's apathy towards farmers, morcha vice president Pasha Patel said here today.

"Over 1.45 lakh farmers have committed suicide in last 10 years of the UPA rule. Rising costs of pesticides, diesel and electricity have made farming an inviable proposition," the BJP leader said.

The UPA government is directly responsible for these suicides, he alleged. The government has not taken any positive step on demands of farmers. They face drought-like situation created by the policies of government, he said.

The government has been fixing agri prices based on a formula finalised 50 years ago. It is high time that the price fixing mechanism was revised keeping in mind the reality, Patel said. The benefit of UPA government's loan waiver scheme went to banks and not to farmers, he said.

The BJP Kisan Morcha will raise the issue of implementation of Swaminathan Commission regarding remunerative prices with 50 per cent profit for farmers, he said. Agro economists should undertake a study of the current agro produce remunerative policy and suggest necessary changes to ensure that farmers benefit, Patel added.