The DMK government has cheated farmers by failing to provide adequate water for the kuruvai paddy crop and by announcing less compensation for the affected crop, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami said on Wednesday.
Addressing mediapersons at Edappadi here, after laying the foundation stone for development works, the former Chief Minister said that before releasing water from the Mettur dam for irrigation in the delta region on June 12 this year, the government should have considered water availability and the requirements for cultivation.
‘Crop withered’
“Cultivation was carried out on five lakh acres in the region. But the government was unable to provide adequate water,” he said, alleging that the crop on over 3.5 lakh acres had withered for want of water. “If Chief Minister M.K. Stalin was concerned about farmers, he should have met Karnataka’s Chief Minister and Water Resources Minister and demanded a minimum of 10 tmc of Cauvery water,” he said.
Mr. Palaniswami further said that the AIADMK government had provided a compensation of ₹1.04 lakh per hectare for crop damage, whereas Mr. Stalin announced a compensation of just ₹13,500 per hectare for the affected kuruvai paddy crop in the delta region.
He said the DMK’s promise of free bus travel for women was not entirely fulfilled as the scheme was applicable only in pink-coloured buses.
Dengue cases are on the rise in the State, he said, and urged the government to conduct more medical camps and take steps to control it.
