Farm laws: Telangana to provide Rs 3 lakh each to families of those who died during protest

The Telangana government on Saturday announced a compensation of Rs 3 lakh each for the families of over 700 farmers who died during the protest against the three agricultural laws.

Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao said that the Centre should give the families Rs 25 lakh and withdraw all the cases filed against the protestors.

Rao’s announcement came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a televised address to the country that the three laws, which faced vociferous protests, will be repealed.

Farmers, mainly from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, have been staging demonstrations at Delhi’s border entry points for nearly a year to push for the withdrawal of the laws, which they fear would make them vulnerable to corporate exploitation.

Citizens lauded the farmers for their sustained protest. The Opposition also celebrated the protestors but pointed out that the Centre decided to rollback the laws because it was worried about the impending elections in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Both the states will go to poll early next year.

The Telangana chief minister said on Saturday that the Centre had realised its mistake, Deccan Chronicle reported. He called on the government to enact a law to ensure that the farmers get minimum support price for their crops.

Rao added that he will meet Modi in Delhi to discuss farming matters. He added that ministers and MPs from his state will also visit the capital to sort out matters related to paddy procurement.

The Telangana chief minister said the farmers in his state will be given guidance on sowing and procurement of paddy.

“There is no need to worry about paddy procurement as around 6,600 paddy purchasing centres were opened across the state,” Rao was quoted as saying by Deccan Chronicle. “We will purchase the last grain of the paddy in the ensuing marketing season.”