‘Govt has turned a blind eye to plight of potato growers’

Lucknow: Drawing attention towards the rapid fall in price of potato crop, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said the UP govt has turned a blind eye to the plight of potato growers in the state. Carrying placards in their hands SP MPs staged a protest outside the Parliament complex in Delhi demanding govt intervention to "save the potato growers." The SP reacted after instances where farmers dumped their potato crop on the roadside claiming that the cost of transporting the produce to the market was more than the selling price. Addressing a gathering at party office in Lucknow, Akhilesh said, "The potato growers have been pushed to the verge of losing their entire yield because of the rapidly falling prices in the wholesale market. The anti-farmer BJP and its govt are not paying heed to the needs of the farmers." He said the power hungry BJP leadership has time for election campaigns to stay in office but not for farmers issues. The former CM accused the BJP of creating a situation where farmers don't get the cost of their produce and are compelled to give up farming. "The BJP's conspiracy has hit the farmers from all directions. It included the land acquisition bill and farm laws, which were later taken back following protests. Now, BJP govt has struck a deal with the US which will hit the farm sector severely," Akhilesh said.‘Govt did nothing to control LPG crisis'Lucknow: Expressing concern over rising prices of essential commodities and short supply of LPG cylinders, Akhilesh Yadav said there should be a debate in Parliament on the two ‘serious issues' concerning the masses. "It seems govt has done nothing to tackle the situation arising from the war and heading to a point where many things will get out of common man's reach," the SP chief said. He said since the BJP govt had claimed that UP has the maximum number of LPG connections in the country, it should make arrangements to ensure its proper supply.