M. Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha, criticised the Union government for its eye-washing concern for farmers. He said that despite 16,000 suicide incidents being reported across India in three years, government had failed to implement proper schemes, waive loans and extend a helping hand to the farmers, thereby, worsening the crises of the agrarian sector.
He was addressing a gathering after participating in the laying of the foundation stone of the Mini-Vidhana Soudha at Aland town in Kalaburagi district on Sunday. Mr. Kharge said, “Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had immediately taken initiative and waived farm loans in the State on the suggestion of AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi, who always stood by farmers under distress.”
Highlighting welfare schemes under the Special Component Plan (SCP) and the Tribe Sub Plan (TSP), the veteran leader said that the CM had earmarked ₹27,000 crore in the 2017-18 budget and had also taken up an irrigation project at a cost of around ₹40,000 crore, as promised. He appealed to other legislators from the Hyderabad Karnataka Region to follow B.R. Patil, MLA of Aland, in sanctioning grants for the development of constituency.
Mr. Patil, who recently joined the Congress through he was elected by the KJP, had undertaken several works including the new Mini-Vidhana Soudha at the cost of ₹102 crore.
School buildings, hostels, roads, milk chilling centres and bridges were some of these.