While the social networking websites of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was poured with best wishes to mark his 68th birthday on September 17, a non-profit group from Andhra Pradesh used the occasion to highlight the predicament of farmers in the region.
To register their dissent in a noticeable manner, farmers of Andhra Pradesh’s Kurnool district in Rayalaseema region sent 68 paise cheques to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a gift on his birthday on Sunday.
According to NDTV, an NGO had demanded the central government to develop irrigation infrastructure, to aid the farmers in the drought-prone areas of Andhra Pradesh.
"We are sending 68 paise cheques as a token to draw your attention to our backwardness," RSSS co-convener Yerva Raamachandra Reddy said.
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The outfit’s president Bojja Dasarah Reddy claims that despite having access to a large amount of water the region faces eternal drought on account of insufficient irrigation infrastructure which is compounded by biased water allocation.
They claim that politicians are not interested in the farmer crisis in Rayalaseema due to the lack of political influence it carries.
Added to this the group chief also claims that to develop the backward region, a special development package was announced for the drought-prone regions of Andhra Pradesh called ‘AP Bifurcation Act’.
