At a time when the incidences of farmer suicides are on the rise, Maoists have expressed solidarity with the farmers’ community over their plights and urged them not take the extreme step.
Nuapada-Mainapur Division of Maoists spokesperson Buddhuram Paharia in an interview to TV channels appealed to the distressed farmers to follow revolutionary path for resolving their problems instead.
Mentioning the suicide of five to six farmers in Nuapada district, he appealed to the farmers not kill selves.
“They should fight for their rights,” Paharia added.
He said the drought condition was grim in the districts like Nuapada, Kalahandi and Nabarangpur of Odisha and Gariaband, Dhamtari and Kanker of Chhattisgarh.
“The Governments are yet to announce any special packages in these six drought-affected districts. We demand that the Governments take necessary step,” he added.
The Maoist leader also asked the State Government to prevent the migration of people in western Odisha.
He presented a five-point charter of demands to the Government. The demands include a compensation of Rs40,000 per acre to the affected farmers, `5 lakh compensation to the next of kin of the deceased farmers, waiver of all loans and all kinds of taxes, facilitation of new loans, ration cards, seeds and fertilisers free of cost.