Pawar meets rain-hit farmers, demands relief

Mumbai: With the untimely rainfall damaging crops in many parts of the state, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Friday visited Nashik district in northern Maharashtra to review crop losses due to the rains.

Mr Pawar visited the Take-Ghoti village in Igatpuri tehsil, met the farmers there and discussed their problems. Mr Pawar visited some of the farms to see the damaged crops. The farmers showed him their losses and shared their pain with him.

The farmers informed Mr Pawar that no state officer had visited the villages. Some villagers complained that the BJP government was purposely ignoring their issues. Nashik is known for its production of grapes and Mr Pawar visited the grape farms in Jadhavwadi village. “The withdrawing monsoon has caused losses to grape growers as cracks have appeared in the grapes due to the rains. After personally visiting and looking at the farms and crops, anyone can estimate how much losses the farmers are suffering,” he tweeted.

“The farmers said that they have lost their crops and suffered heavy losses due to which they are unable to understand whether to live or die. No one from the government has approached them, the farmers said,” tweeted Mr Pawar.

The NCP issued a note where Mr Pawar warned the state government that if it failed to help the affected farmers in time, he would take detailed information from them and put up their grievances before the government. Mr Pawar expressed hope that the government would patiently hear the farmers and help them.

About the parameters applied to gauge farmers’ losses, Mr Pawar observed, “The government’s parameters are two to three years’ old and today’s situation is different from the past.”

Crops such as rice, grapes, soya bean and corn have suffered serious damage in Nashik district.