Mysore/Mysuru: The Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) has urged the State Government to announce schemes aimed at farmer welfare in the forthcoming Budget.

Addressing a press meet here recently, KRRS President Badagalapura Nagendra said that the farmers of the State were distressed by loss of crops due to floods and drought, unremunerative prices for crops and rising farming costs. In this backdrop, the Government must come to the rescue of farmers by announcing sops and schemes that really benefit the farming community,he said.

Welcoming Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa’s decision to convene a meeting of farmer leaders at Bengaluru on Feb.13, Nagendra said that the KRRS would present a 21-point charter of demands to the Government at the meeting. Urging the Government to waive off long-term and short-term loans of farmers at all the 177 PLD Banks in the State, he said that the State Government must take measures to clear all hurdles in the full implementation of the farm-loan waiver scheme announced by the previous H.D. Kumaraswamy Government and announce Budgetary allocations for the revival of Mandya, Pandavapura and Chunchanakatte Sugar factories.

The other farmer demands include withdrawal of all cases against farmer, Dalit and Kannada activists,  measures for value addition for farm produce, promotion of Zero-budget farming, a favourable Neera policy, skill development programmes for rural women and permanent drought relief measures, among others.