Hailstorm, paddy prices, highway survey:Wadettiwar seeks urgent relief for farmers

Nagpur: Congress legislature party leader Vijay Wadettiwar on Tuesday demanded immediate financial relief for farmers hit by unseasonal rain and hailstorm, while also questioning the govt over pending paddy bonuses and the land survey process for the proposed Shaktipeeth Highway.Moving an adjournment motion in the Maharashtra Assembly, Wadettiwar said heavy rain and hail over the past 24 hours damaged standing crops across Vidarbha and Marathwada. Districts including Nagpur, Bhandara, Gondia and Yavatmal in Vidarbha, and Beed, Latur, Nanded and Parbhani in Marathwada, were among the worst affected, he said. "Jowar, wheat and gram crops that were ready for harvest were lost," Wadettiwar told the House, adding that mango and grape orchards also suffered significant losses. He noted that the meteorological department had warned of further rainfall in Solapur, Parbhani, Nanded and Dharashiv over the next two days, intensifying concerns among cultivators.
Raising the issue of paddy farmers separately, Wadettiwar said the reply given by minister of state Yogesh Kadam to a calling attention motion on farmers' distress and the promised bonus was "not satisfactory". He urged the minister to provide a point-wise response and take a positive stand on placing the matter before the next Cabinet meeting. "Today farmers are not getting even ₹1,500 for their paddy. In such a situation, the govt must stand behind them and announce ₹20,000 per acre," he said.He also pointed out that compensation announced earlier for excessive rainfall did not yet reach farmers and that the paddy bonus remained unpaid. "Previous compensation for excessive rainfall was not yet received, the promised bonus for paddy was not given, and now another crisis struck," he said, calling for immediate cash assistance rather than procedural delays.Responding to the debate, minister of state Yogesh Kadam said the govt was serious and was finalising the procedure for issuing a govt resolution. He said a meeting would be held under the CM's chairmanship and that a proposal would be placed before the Cabinet.Wadettiwar alleged that in the Shaktipeeth Highway land survey process, notices were being pasted on farmers' homes and that heavy police deployment created fear. Speaker Rahul Narwekar directed the govt to make a statement on the issue.