Farmersrsquo body warns of Nota use in polls

  • | Sunday | 31st March, 2019

“The Swaminathan Commission was formed in 2004 when the Congress-led UPA government was at the Centre. Some the questions farmers will be asking are why agriculture is considered non-skilled work, why farmers’ income commission has not been formed, why no measure is being taken to give legal status to share-croppers. “Both the BJP and the BJD have betrayed the farmers,” he added.The POKSSS also slammed the Congress. However, Congress did not show any interest in implementing the recommendations,” Lingaraj said.POKSSS leader Ashok Pradhan said when politicians visit their villagers, farmers will ask what they have done for them. The POKSSS has also prepared a list of questions to be directed to the politicians when they visit their villages asking for votes.

Sambalpur: The Paschim Odisha Krushak Sangathan Samanwaya Samiti (POKSSS), an umbrella body of various farmer organizations from western Odisha, has threatened not to vote for any party in the upcoming elections and opt for Nota (none of the above) instead.Addressing a press conference here on Saturday, convener of POKSSS, Lingaraj said, “The leaders and activists of POKSSS have been asked to press the Nota button. They would also campaign and mobilize farmers to opt for Nota, rather than the BJD, BJP or the Congress.”Lingaraj said both the state’s Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (Kalia) and the Centre’s PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi schemes are clever tactics to bypass the farmers’ major demands, which include complete loan waiver, implementation of the Swaminathan Commission recommendations as well as bonus for agricultural produces at the state level. “Both the BJP and the BJD have betrayed the farmers,” he added.The POKSSS also slammed the Congress. “The Swaminathan Commission was formed in 2004 when the Congress-led UPA government was at the Centre. The report of the commission was submitted in 2006. However, Congress did not show any interest in implementing the recommendations,” Lingaraj said.POKSSS leader Ashok Pradhan said when politicians visit their villagers, farmers will ask what they have done for them. The POKSSS has also prepared a list of questions to be directed to the politicians when they visit their villages asking for votes. Some the questions farmers will be asking are why agriculture is considered non-skilled work, why farmers’ income commission has not been formed, why no measure is being taken to give legal status to share-croppers.

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