Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, 25 September, lashed out the Opposition and accused them of misleading the farmers.
“All BJP Karyakartas should reach out to farmers on the ground and inform them in a simplified language about the importance and intricacies of the new farm reforms, how these will empower them. Our ground connect will bust the lies and rumours being spread in the virtual world,” PM Modi said while addressing the BJP workers on the Foundation Day of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana on the occasion of his birth anniversary.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi alleged that the Opposition was using farmers for their benefit.
He said that the previous government used to make a complicated web of promises and laws that farmers or labourers could never understand. But the BJP-led NDA government has constantly tried to change this situation and has introduced reforms for the welfare of farmers.
Continuing his attack on the opposition the Prime Minister said that for decades of independence, many slogans were raised in the name of farmers and labourers, big manifestos were written, but the time has proved how hollow all those things were.
“The farmers were kept entangled in such laws, due to which they could not even sell their own produce, according to their mind. As a result, despite the increase in yield, the income of the farmers did not increase that much. Yes, the debt definitely increased on them,” PM Modi said.
While speaking on the government’s initiative, PM Narendra Modi said that the NDA government in the last few years made full efforts to connect farmers with banks. Over Rs. One lakh crores were transferred to more than 10 crore farmers under PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana.
Defending the labour reform bills, the prime minister said that earlier, there existed about 10,000 slabs of minimum wages for various sectors. Under new labour reforms, these have been reduced to around 200 slabs.
He also stated that the new labour reforms will transform the lives of the labour force. earlier only 30 percent of the workers across the country were covered under the minimum wage guarantee scheme. Now, it will expand to workers of all the industries in the unorganised sector.
PM Modi’s remarks came as farmers began their protest against the contentious farm bills that were passed in the Parliament. A nationwide protest began on Friday, 25 September, with over two dozen farmer organisations have announced their support to the call for the bandh.
Opposition parties, including the Congress, TMC, the Left, AAP and Samajwadi Party, have also extended support to the farmers in their protests.
(With inputs from ANI and India Today)
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