People's
Democracy
(Weekly Organ of the Communist Party of
India (Marxist) No. 08
February 23, 2003
(Weekly Organ of the Communist Party of
India (Marxist) |
Vol.
XXVII No. 08 February 23, 2003 |
ANDHRA
PRADESH
CPI(M)
Demands
Food
Security,
Warns
Of
Seige
On
FCI
Godowns
M
Venugopala
Rao
THE Andhra Pradesh state committee of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has warned the state government that it would resort to direct action and lay siege to the godowns of Food Corporation of India (FCCI), if the state government fails to take necessary steps to tackle the severe drought situation in the state and provide food security to the people. After the two-day meeting of its state committee, held at Hyderabad on January 31 and February 1, the party demanded that the government must convene an all-party meeting immediately to discuss the severe drought situation prevailing in the state. Through a resolution passed in the meeting, the CPI(M) demanded the government to take drought relief measures on war-footing.
Explaining
the
decisions
taken
in
the
meeting,
CPI(M)
state
secretary
B
V
Raghavulu
said
members
of
the
state
committee
of
the
party
went
to
150
villages
and
enquired
from
the
people
about
the
drought
conditions
there.
Raghavulu
himself
participated
in
a
survey
on
drought
conditions
at
Raminepalli
of
Rapthadu
Mandal
in
Anantapur
district.
The
CPI(M)
has
demanded
that
in
the
all-party
meeting
the
state
government
must
discuss
the
needed
steps
to
be
taken,
besides
taking
a
decision
on
how
to
hold
talks
with
the
central
government
to
seek
its
assistance
in
tackling
the
drought
situation.
At
the
same
time,
the
CPI(M)
has
demanded
the
central
government
to
liberally
release
rice
for
the
food-for-work
programme
and
waive
the
dues
of
loans
in
those
areas
which
have
been
affected
by
drought
for
the
last
three
to
four
years.
Under
the
swajaladhara
scheme,
meagre
allocations
were
made
to
the
state
by
the
centre.
In
several
districts
of
the
state,
agricultural
workers
and
other
poor
people
are
consuming
brokens
which
are
used
as
chicken
feed.
As
a
result,
they
are
suffering
from
malnutrition
and
diseases.
The
CPI(M)
has
demanded
that
the
government
run
gruel
centres
for
the
hungry
and
starving
people
which
would
be
useful
to
the
old
people
and
pregnant
women
also.
The
party
has
demanded
the
government
to
start
the
food-for-work
programme
immediately,
with
the
six
lakh
tonnes
of
rice
sanctioned
by
the
central
government
from
October
last
onwards.
Another
demand
the
party
has
made
is
that
the
state
government
must
supply
fodder
for
the
cattle,
power
for
agriculture
and
subsidised
rice
to
the
agricultural
workers
and
poor
farmers,
irrespective
of
their
ration
cards.
Later
a
delegation
of
the
CPI(M),
comprising
Polit
Bureau
member
Koratala
Satyanarayana,
Raghavulu
and
state
committee
members
S
Mallareddy
and
B
Tulasidas,
met
the
central
team
led
by
P
K
Agarwal
at
Hyderabad
on
February
4,
which
came
to
study
the
drought
situation
in
the
state,
and
urged
them
to
recommend
to
the
central
government
to
sanction
an
assistance
of
Rs
2000
crore
and
25
lakh
tonnes
of
rice
to
the
state
which
has
suffered
heavy
losses
on
account
of
the
severe
drought
situation.
They
brought
to
the
notice
of
the
central
team
that,
out
of
6
lakh
tonnes
of
rice
sanctioned
by
the
centre,
only
3.15
lakh
tonnes
was
released
and
that
the
state
government
had
stopped
implementation
of
the
food-for-work
programme
for
the
last
three
months.
The
peasantry
in
the
state
is
heavily
indebted
and
the
total
outstanding
agricultural
loans
as
at
the
end
of
March
last
year
was
about
Rs
12,500
crore.
For
want
of
fodder
and
scarcity
of
drinking
water,
cattle
were
being
sold
away
very
cheaply
to
the
slaughter
houses.
The
CPI(M)
leaders
also
suggested
stoppage
of
recovery
of
dues
of
all
agricultural
loans
sanctioned
by
banks
and
private
lenders,
waiver
of
dues
of
loans
of
farmers
possessing
of
less
than
10
acres
of
dry
land
and
of
interest
on
loans
sanctioned
to
other
farmers
in
the
areas
affected
by
drought
frequently,
sanctioning
of
consumption
loans
to
the
agricultural
workers,
payment
of
compensation
to
farmers
who
lost
their
crops,
and
immediate
settlement
of
claims
of
crop
insurance
and
modification
of
norms
to
suit
the
interests
of
the
farmers.
Explaining
the
severity
of
the
drought
situation
in
the
state,
the
CPI(M)
delegation
said
there
was
no
work
for
agricultural
workers
and
they
as
well
as
small
and
marginal
farmers
were
migrating
out
for
want
of
work.
However,
the
migrant
labour
also
could
not
get
work.
The
CPI(M)
leaders
told
the
central
team
that
scarcity
of
drinking
water
started
from
January
itself,
and
urged
the
centre
to
sanction
all
the
water
schemes
proposed
by
the
state
government
under
swajaladhara.
They
pointed
out
that
unable
to
withstand
financial
difficulties
962
farmers
had
committed
suicide
(as
per
newspaper
reports)
in
the
state
during
the
last
six
years,
and
that
the
state
government
did
not
even
sanction
any
ex
gratia
to
the
families
of
the
deceased.
Farmers
who
could
not
pay
back
their
loans
committed
suicides,
some
others
sold
away
their
kidneys,
and
some
their
daughters
also.
The
CPI(M)
leaders
requested
the
central
team
to
visit
the
drought-affected
districts
like
Ananatapur
also,
instead
of
confining
their
visit
to
Medak
and
Nalgonda
districts
alone.
