MP: Congress to protest on fertiliser shortage tomorrow; CM Yadav says 1.68 lakh MT urea in stock

Bhopal, Aug 19 (IANS) The opposition Congress continued to raise the fertiliser shortage issue and irregularities at government-run distribution centres in different parts of the state amid sowing of 'kharif' crops at its peak.

In the past few days, several Congress leaders, including former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath, senior MLA Ajay Singh and a few others, blamed the BJP government for not being able to provide adequate fertiliser to farmers.

Pushing further on this issue, the Congress has decided to hold a protest in Chhindwara on the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on August 20.

Former Chief Minister Kamal Nath, along with his son and former MP, will lead the protest.

In a statement, Kamal Nath accused the BJP government of deliberately ignoring Chhindwara's farmers.

"I urge all farmers, brothers and people of Chhindwara and Pandhurna to join the protest on Tuesday," he said.

The fertiliser shortage has been a regular news item for the last few weeks, especially in Chhindwara, where farmers protested on several occasions.

A few days back, several farmers were booked for creating violence during a protest.

On Tuesday, Congress MLA Ajay Singh, who is the son of former Chief Minister Arjun Singh, shared a video on his social media account, showing farmers in his Churhat Assembly constituency protesting at government-run distribution centres.

However, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav stated that the state has a total storage of 15.60 lakh metric tonnes of urea, of which 13.92 lakh metric tonnes have already been distributed to farmers, with 1.68 lakh metric tonnes remaining.

"Due to an increase of about 5 lakh hectares in maize cultivation, demand for urea has risen. The state is expected to receive an additional 5.60 lakh metric tonnes within the next one and a half months," the Chief Minister said.

--IANS

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