The state unit of the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) has announced a movement against the government over what it terms an “agriculture crisis” in Tripura. On Friday, AIKS demanded that the central government review the Minimum Support Price (MSP) based on the C2+50% formula to ensure the welfare of farmers across the state.
AIKS state committee leader Pabitra Kar led a rally in Agartala, emphasizing that farmers throughout India, including Tripura, are struggling due to the BJP government’s anti-farmer policies. Kar highlighted that although the central government had set an MSP of Rs 23 per kg of paddy, which AIKS opposed, the Tripura government has been procuring paddy at an MSP of Rs 21 per kg, lower than the central rate. “The Tripura government is cheating the farmers here with the MSP that they had fixed,” he stated.
Kar also criticized the government’s failure to compensate farmers affected by recent natural calamities. He noted that, ahead of the upcoming Panchayat elections, the government announced compensation for 81,000 farmers, but significant agricultural production losses due to natural disasters have pushed up vegetable prices in the market.
“We met the Chief Minister, agriculture minister, and various other officials of the agriculture department in different parts of the state to highlight the issues of farmers and demanded appropriate action. We were told that the government is looking into the agriculture issue seriously,” Kar told reporters.
Additionally, Kar condemned the government for not taking action regarding the ‘Ulta Rath’ tragedy. “One year has passed since the incident at Kumarghat on this day last year, where 10 people died, and several others were injured, but the government has failed to act on it,” he said.
