NITISH GOVERNMENT GUARANTEES THE MSP IF WISHES TO GET SUPPORT—BKU NATIONAL PRESIDENT RAKESH TIKAIT

NITISH GOVERNMENT GUARANTEES THE MSP IF WISHES TO GET SUPPORT—BKU NATIONAL PRESIDENT RAKESH TIKAIT

8-OCT-ENG 1

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

SASARAM/ARA---------------------------If the Nitish Government guarantees the Minimum Support Price (MSP) law in the interest of the farmers, he himself will campaign to make Nitish Kumar the Prime Minister, otherwise, only tractors will be seen on the roads of Patna. If you are dreaming of becoming PM, guarantee MSP in Bihar and make arrangements for legal action against those who buy farmers’ grains at lower prices than MSP, said the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) national president, Rakesh Tikait.

Addressing the Kisan Panchayat on the campus of Koath High School, Rakesh Tikait said that the government of Chhattisgarh gives the price of paddy at Rs. 2600 per quintal while the Telangana government gives a subsidy of Rs. m10,000 per acre. If Bihar government gives MSP and farmer pension, they would campaign for Nitish Kumar. Otherwise, if needed, tractors will also run on the roads of Patna.

The movement has not started yet and not a single tear has burst from the farmers’ eyes so far. Taking the name of Swami Sahajanand Saraswati, Rakesh Tikait said that the farmers of Bihar have become labourers. The people of Bihar, the country and the world are full of big businessmen who loot farmers’ land and they would work as labourers on their own lands. He challenged the farmers and said that in the name of Bihar, sacrifice one year’s crop and the government will get down on its knee. Tikait appeal is to make a meeting place and be ready to walk on the streets of Patna. He questioned for whom will the governments, villages and farmers start working?

National Vice President, BKU Rajbir Singh said that along with the Centre, the State governments are equally responsible for ruining the farmers of the country. He said that the BKU is ready if there is a need to surround Patna like Delhi to save the crops and breed of the farmer of Bihar. The farmers’ organization does not care whose government it is.

Uttar Pradesh BKU Youth President, Anuj Singh said if the farmers of Bihar decide to sacrifice their lives but will not give up their land, the government will get down on knee. He said that this area belongs to Veer Kuer Singh. Bihar State BKU convener, Dinesh Singh said that the area of Shahabad is regarded bowl of rice but the farmers here are living under pitiable condition. He gestured that the farmers of Shahabad have to surround Patna and throw the persons in power out of their homes.

Local farmers informed the farmers’ leader Rakesh Tikait about their problems. They said that MSP is not available on agricultural products and government purchasing centres remain closed when the crop is ready. They are forced to give their grains to middlemen after that the purchasing centres PACS opens. The farmers’ leader was informed about the issues like black marketing of fertilizers, non-availability of subsidy on agricultural equipment, water from canals not reaching the fields, lack of electricity facility for irrigation etc. Compensation four times the market value of the land acquired for the same Dawat bypass.

Former minister Sudhkar Singh of Nitish Cabinet, who is moving towards becoming the leader of the farmers in Bihar politics and former minister Akhlakh Ahmed who started his politics as a farmer leader, were seen on the stage with the BKU national president Rakesh Tikait and told many things to consider. It is an attempt to show a strong claim from Buxar Lok Sabha constituency while others are calling it a face fighting for farmers.

Former minister cum Ramgarh MLA Sudhakar Singh said that the Mandi Act was abolished in Bihar in the year 2006 due to which the farmers of the State re incurring a loss of over Rs. 1 lakh crore per year on their produce and are not getting fair prices for their milk also.

Parvez Siddiqui, Upendra Singh, Raghunath Singh, Rajesh Yadav, Soni Khan, Indu Singh presented the welcome song. Fish producing farmers are also worried due to low price. Akhlakh Ahmed said that agriculture was 50% of GDP in the first five-year plan but now it has come down to 14%. Farmers are now seized to be mere labourers. BJP had said that based on the recommendations of Swaminathan Committee, the prices of farmers’ produces will be decided.

The labour of the farmer family will be added to the fertilizers used for the crops and irrigation but on the contrary, the Central Government started trying to suck the blood of the farmers by making three agriculture laws. Rakesh Tikait and other famer organizations realized the demerit of the laws and the farmers of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh gave martyrdom and forced the Modi Government to kneel after a long struggle.

By abolishing the market system, Nitish government has ruined the farmers. Akhlakh Ahmed demanded from the Bihar Government to implement the recession system and open purchasing centres. GST on agricultural products should be abolished by pumping water from Kanare, Malay Barrage and dropping it in the canal to irrigate three thousands of land in Semari, Jamson, Babunaul panchayats.

Earlier Rakesh Tikait reached Jagdishpur Veer Kuer Singh Fort complex on a three day visit to Bihar where he garlanded the life-size statue of Babu Veer Kuer Singh, one of the forefront freedom fighter of the India’s first war of Independence in the year 1857 and paid homage. While looking at the Veer Kuer Singh Fort, he also took information related to it. During this, he while answering the questions of journalists, said that he will soon protest in Bihar on the issue of farmers. Later he proceeded to Sisodiha in Ramgarh and at Maliyabagh in Rohtas to address farmers’ panchayat there.