Telangana Opposition takes to streets over loan waiver issue

Hyderabad: A day after the suspension of Opposition members from the Telangana Legislative Assembly, Congress and TDP-BJP combine today hit the streets, demanding that the TRS government should implement its election promise of farm loan waiver at one go instead of in phases.

NDA allies TDP and BJP held a 'Maha Dharna' (grand sit-in) in Gajwel, the Assembly constituency of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao. Demanding that the government should issue an order for clearing the dues of farm loan waiver package by October 9, Telangana TDP president L Ramana said the opposition would not hesitate to jointly call for a shut-down on October 10 if their demands were not fulfilled.

TDP floor leader in the Assembly E Dayakar Rao alleged that TRS had forgotten its poll promises. It promised to waive farm loans up to Rs 1 lakh but did not do so in a single instalment, which had caused financial distress to farmers and led to suicides, he alleged.

BJP floor leader K Laxman said the state government had not been able to even declare the drought-hit mandals so far. Telangana Congress leader, meanwhile, today left for the districts in a bus to meet the families of the farmers who allegedly committed suicide. Both Congress and TDP would continue their agitation for the next few days.

Agriculture minister Pocharam Srinivasa Reddy said the Opposition continued to protest even when the government had announced that it would make sincere efforts to waive the loans at a go.

The government had paid about Rs 80,000 crore towards the farm loan waiver, but the Opposition insisted during a debate in the Assembly that the remaining amount (about Rs 8,000 crore) be paid at one go. Opposition members, including that of Congress, TDP, BJP, CPI, CPI(M), were suspended from the Assembly yesterday for disrupting the proceedings over the issue.

PTI