IMPHAL, September 21: The condition of peasants remains similar to that during the days of the British Raj when they were denied their rights and their futures ruined by different factors, said Jitendra Choudhury, an MP from Tripura.
He was speaking on the occasion of the 66th Loumeegi Numit (Manipur Kanba Numit) at Rupmahal Theater which was organized by Manipur Loumee Marup (All India Kishan Sabha) today.
Choudhury who is also a member of Central Kisan Committee said before independence the conditions of the peasants were in a deplorable state and it remains the same even though they provide enough essential commodities for the people by toiling hard.
Various Prime Ministers have made promises of bringing positive changes to the lives of peasants without any substantive changes till date but the peasants continue to produce numerous agricultural products for the people, he adds.
He further said that farmers could not benefit from the various policies adopted by successive government from the time of Jawaharlal Nehru to the incumbent PM Narendra Modi’s time as a result of the government being inept.
This despite the fact that they made tall claims of providing benefits to the peasants, he adds alleging that successive governments have always neglected the farmers.
With a concern for the welfare of peasants, the government has enacted the Land Reform Act but the act is being implemented only in Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura, he said, adding that other states which failed to implement the act could not enjoy the benefits provided through the provisions of this act.
Choudhury stated that every year many farmers are losing their lands and those farmers who lost their lands become labourers moving from one country to another and from one state to another.
The government which hasn’t adopted any policies to control such movement of people must come up with a policy, he stressed.
Many people who came to attend the function paid floral tribute to the portrait of Hijam Irawat Singh before the event began.
Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2014/09/tripura-mp-bemoans-the-condition-of-peasants/