Rs 5,000 aid to farmers far too little, govt should be generous: Jayant Patil

Sangli: The government is giving Rs 5,000 to farmers in distress because of heavy rain and adverse conditions. Nationalist Congress Party state president Jayant Patil said this aid is very meagre. He demanded that the government be generous with relief so that farmers can have a good Diwali.

Patil said farmers need substantial financial help in the present situation, and Rs 5,000 falls well short. He said the government should keep their difficulties in mind, raise the amount of aid to give relief, and take a liberal view.

Speaking about the graduates' constituency election, Patil criticised the BJP. He said the Chief Minister and other BJP ministers are holding rallies and meetings because they do not trust party workers in the district. He said Nationalist Congress Party workers had done Arun Lad's voter registration. Even if Lad has gone to the BJP's side, the voters will not necessarily go with him, Patil said.

"Arun Lad has been with us for the past 40 years. Even if he has gone to a BJP meeting or rally for his son, we will not vent anger at him," he said. A person's political stand and the voters' decision are separate matters, he indicated.

Expressing concern over law and order in the state, Patil criticised the government. He said the fear and authority of the law no longer exist in the state. He alleged that police time is going into providing security for ministers and their arrangements rather than maintaining law and order. He also said many police stations have no police available because they are deployed for ministers' security.

Patil also asked whether ministers other than the Chief Minister need police protection on such a large scale. He said police should be used to maintain law and order, and indicated that deploying them in large numbers for ministers' security raises the question of ordinary citizens' safety.

Patil also raised the issue of rising fuel prices. He criticised the ministers, saying that after fuel became costlier they cut down their use of vehicles for four days, but then everything went back to how it was. Reducing the use of vehicles for a few days will not solve the problem, he indicated; the government should take a consistent position on official expenditure and vehicle use.

Patil thus took aim at the government on issues ranging from aid to farmers and the graduates' election to law and order and ministers' vehicles. While demanding more financial help for farmers, he questioned the BJP's election strategy and the arrangements for police security.