'Ph Parijat misleading people in name of socialist ideology'
Source: Hueiyen News Service

Imphal, July 19 2011: In a public meeting today at Naodakhong Makha Leikai community hall in Bishnupur district, farmers expressed strong resentment against the inflated price of fertilizers in the state and blamed agriculture minister Ph Parijat of misleading the people in the name of the socialist ideology of Communist Party of India (CPI) .

CPI Manipur used to stand up for the people's rights against the state especially when prices of essential commodities rose unreasonably but the present agriculture minister Ph Parijat of the CPI has been apathetic to the plight of the farmers when fertilizers are being wantonly sold at inflated prices, said president of Lousal, L Ranjit.

The public meeting was organized by Plain and Hill Development Organization and Ithai and Wangoo Naodakhong Progressive Farmers Development Association maintained that the time is ripe for the people to choose an ideal person as their representative who will look after the welfare of the people and not engage in petty politics.

There is need for a comprehensive policy on procurement and distribution of fertilizers in the state so that no farmer is deprived of his rights, he said.

AMPFDA coordinator, Thoiba Konthoujam said that about 80% of the population of the state is dependent on agriculture, therefore the issue of fertilizer scarcity is felt by 80% of the people.

People should extend support to the farmers in their fight for the availability of fertilizers at the government approved rate, he added.

Farmers were promised fertilizers at ' 520 per bag as against the available rate of ' 650-700 per bag, he said, and warned the government against playing dirty politics aimed at favouring a crony business policy.

Only about 200-300 bags of fertilizers are distributed in a constituency which is way below the required amount of 2-3 bags of fertilizers per farmer, he said.

Sunil Karam said that Manipur needs about 20, 000 MT of fertilizers a year.

Authorized dealers are prevented from procuring fertilizers while unauthorized dealers who are close to the agriculture minister are given easy access to the essential commodity, he said.

The government earlier had an excuse of inaccessible highways and a bad law and order situation to make fertilizers available, but the government cannot hide anymore under any excuse, he added.

The government had announced a fertilizer subsidy of ' 2 crore in order to mitigate the plight of the farmers who are forced to buy it for as much as ' 700 per bag from the market, but fertilizers continue to sell at the inflated rate as against the subsidized rate of ' 520 per bag.

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