YSRCP chief Jagan accuses CM Naidu of abandoning farmers, calls agrarian crisis man-made

YSRCP president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has accused Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu of abandoning the farming community and creating a “man-made calamity” in Andhra Pradesh’s agriculture sector.

Addressing a video conference with regional coordinators and district presidents from the party’s central office at Tadepalli near here on Thursday,  Mr. Jagan reviewed the cyclone-hit districts in the aftermath of Cyclone Montha and assessed the condition of farmers affected by crop losses.

Mr. Jagan recalled that during the previous YSRCP regime, the government had implemented a free crop insurance scheme covering 85 lakh farmers and 70 lakh acres, with the State paying the entire premium. Over ₹7,802 crore was disbursed as compensation to 54.55 lakh farmers in five years, he said.

In contrast, he alleged that under the present coalition government, insurance coverage shrunk drastically to 19 lakh farmers and 19 lakh acres, limited only to those who took bank loans. “For two years, not even a single season’s premium has been paid by this government. The rest of the farmers have been left exposed — where is crop security now? This is clearly a man-made calamity,” he said.

Mr. Jagan charged that the TDP-led government failed to provide even basic input subsidies, despite pending payments of ₹600 crore to 5.5 lakh farmers.  Key initiatives such as e-Crop registration and Rythu Bharosa Kendras were dismantled, and farmers were deprived of fair prices and procurement support.

He listed unfulfilled promises, including chilli procurement at ₹11,781 per quintal, mango at ₹12 per kg, onion at ₹1,200 per quintal, and the promised ₹50,000 per hectare compensation for crop loss. “Under Annadata Sukhibhava, farmers were supposed to receive ₹40,000 but got only ₹5,000,  a clear act of cheating by Mr. Naidu,” he said, adding that the government’s publicity during Cyclone Montha was “louder than its relief on the ground.”

Commending YSRCP cadres for helping affected families during the cyclone, Mr. Jagan urged them to monitor the crop loss enumeration process closely to ensure fairness and prevent manipulation. “No farmer should be denied compensation. If officials commit mistakes, our leaders must question and correct them,” he said.