Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], May 21 (ANI): Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Working President K T Rama Rao (KTR) on Thursday launched a scathing attack on the Congress government over the alleged deepening crop procurement crisis in Telangana and accused the Chief Minister of completely failing the farming community.

In a strongly-worded open letter addressed to the Chief Minister, KTR alleged that the Congress government has pushed Telangana farmers into unprecedented distress through administrative negligence, failed procurement management, and anti-farmer policies.

As per the letter, 'Expressing serious concern over the worsening situation at procurement centres across the state, KTR said farmers who once cultivated with confidence and dignity during the BRS government are today being forced onto the streets in despair. He stated that Telangana's farming community, which believed decades of suffering had finally ended under the leadership of the former Chief Minister, has once again been dragged back into uncertainty and humiliation under Congress rule.'

KTR alleged that after coming to power, the Congress government systematically dismantled every farmer welfare and protection mechanism introduced during the BRS regime.

He accused the government of failing to provide investment support, mishandling fertiliser supply, and now completely collapsing the crop procurement system.

Highlighting the scale of the crisis, KTR said farmers across Telangana have been waiting helplessly at procurement centres for nearly two months with no proper procurement taking place. He claimed that protests, dharnas, and road blockades are erupting daily across the state as angry farmers demand justice.

'There is not a single farmer in Telangana who has not taken to the streets. There is not a single highway where protests and road blockades have not taken place,' KTR said in the letter.

KTR expressed anguish that several farmers have reportedly collapsed and died near procurement centres due to heatstroke, stress, and prolonged waiting. He criticised the Chief Minister for allegedly failing to visit even a single procurement centre despite the ongoing humanitarian crisis.

He further accused the Chief Minister of prioritising political visits to Delhi over addressing the suffering of Telangana farmers.

'Had even one per cent of the attention shown towards repeated Delhi trips been directed towards farmers, Telangana would not have witnessed this situation,' KTR remarked.

The BRS Working President said the most painful consequence of the government's failure is that distressed farmers are now being forced to burn the crops they cultivated with months of hard work.

He described the burning heaps of grain visible on roads across Telangana as 'living evidence of the government's administrative collapse and anti-farmer attitude.'

KTR also alleged serious irregularities and inefficiencies in procurement operations. He pointed out that in several districts, including from Warangal to Khammam, procurement centres are unable to dispatch even a single truckload of grain per day.

He criticised the Congress government for reducing farmers to a situation where they are being forced to pay deposits even for gunny bags.

'A government that cannot even provide gunny bags or protect crops from unseasonal rains has no moral right to claim it stands with farmers,' he said.

KTR recalled that during the BRS government, procurement planning used to begin months in advance and was monitored continuously to ensure smooth operations.

He said that from the supply of gunny bags to timely payments into farmers' bank accounts, every aspect of procurement was reviewed regularly under KCR's leadership.

He further stated that even during the COVID-19 pandemic, the BRS government procured every grain directly from farmers' threshing floors and stood firmly with the farming community during one of the most difficult periods in recent history.

Contrasting that period with the present situation, KTR said agriculture, which once functioned 'like a festival' under BRS governance, has now been transformed into 'an ocean of tears' under Congress rule.

He alleged that the Congress government's negligence has already pushed more than a thousand farmers toward suicide and created widespread anger among the farming community.

Warning the government of serious political consequences, KTR said the frustration among farmers is rapidly turning into a statewide rebellion against the Congress government.

'The countdown has begun for a government that failed even to weigh and procure crops after sixty days,' he said.

KTR demanded that the Cabinet meeting scheduled on May 23 immediately take up the procurement crisis and announce corrective measures.

He urged the government to procure every grain lying in heaps at procurement centres without further delay and ensure that farmers receive payments immediately.

He also demanded that the state government announce an ex-gratia compensation of Rs 25 lakh each to the families of farmers who reportedly lost their lives near procurement centres due to the government's negligence.

Concluding the letter, KTR warned the Chief Minister that if immediate corrective action is not taken, history would remember the Congress government only as 'a betrayer of farmers.' (ANI)