Rythu Swarajya Vedika has flayed the Andhra Pradesh Government for allocating meagre allocations for agriculture and allied sectors in the 2012-13 Budget .
“In a huge Budget of Rs 1.40 lakh crore, agriculture has got just Rs 2,946 crore. Even if you add allocations to allied sectors, the figure would touch only the 5,890-crore mark. A good part of it goes as salaries. Farmers will get nothing,” Mr Kiran Kumar Vissa of AID India and Dr. D. Narasimha Reddy (Chetana Society), said.
Addressing a press conference here on Thursday, they criticised the Government for not giving enough focus to a sector that takes care of the livelihood of 60 per cent of the population. “Farmers and non-governmental organisations have been asking for at least 20 per cent allocation. Farm sector is facing a severe crisis with poor remunerative prices and sharp increase in cost of production. The sector needs urgent attention,” they said.
“Support prices announced by the Centre for various crops are not sufficient enough to meet the costs. They have been asking for increase in MSP. But what should they do if the Union Government fails to listen to their appeals? It is the responsibility of States to see to it that farmers get remunerative prices,” they said.
“Farmers can reduce cost of production if they follow sustainable practices. The Government should provide financial resources to farmers to follow such practices ,” Mr K. Ravi of the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture, said.