With farmers committing suicide due to crop failure following unseasonal rains recently, Rajya Sabha members on Wednesday sought immediate disbursal of compensation to farmers. Sharad Pawar (NCP), Sharad Yadav (JD(U)), Ram Gopal Yadav (SP), Madhusudan Mistry (Congress) raised the issue of agrarian distress. “Crops have been impacted due to rain and hail. Unless the Government gives support to them, farmers will not survive,” said Pawar.
Supporting him, Sharad Yadav said farmers in Uttar Pradesh are committing suicide even though there was no history of such acts in the State. “The Government should provide relief to them instead of making statements,” he said. While Ram Gopal Yadav urged Government to disburse relief package without delay. Even Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien expressed concern saying expeditious action was needed from the Government’s side.
Responding to members, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the Agriculture Ministry has asked State Governments to make an assessment of the damages and provide information so that relief can be provided.
Meanwhile, Congress members tried to corner the Government on the controversy of “scrapping” Gandhi Jayanti on October 2 from the list of holidays by the BJP-ruled Goa Government. Shantaram Naik (Cong) said this was an “open insult” to Mahatma Gandhi and “deserves to be condemned.” He added that this was not the first time such a thing has happened and in the past too holidays on Gandhi Jayanti, Good Friday and St Francis Xavier’s birthday were cancelled by the BJP Government in the State and had to be reinstated after hue and cry by people. “It leaves no scope for any doubt about the intention of the Goa Government,” Naik said.
Sharad Yadav intervened to say Gandhi’s stature would not fall on this issue and a holiday on Gandhi Jayanti should not become a matter of controversy. However, the Centre defended this saying it was a printing error which has since been corrected. “Gandhi Jayanti is a national holiday and is not particular to any State. It does not matter if a State lists it or not it remains a holiday. It is a printing mistake and has since been corrected,” Naqvi said.