Bhopal, Sep 3
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Wednesday held a meeting with senior officials to review the status of fertiliser distribution and availability of stock in several districts, especially where reports of irregularities and shortage were reported in the past few days.
The review meeting held at the Chief Minister's residence was attended by Chief Secretary Anurag Jain and other senior bureaucrats. District collectors joined the meeting through video conferencing and briefed about the availability of fertiliser stock and the process of the distribution system in their respective districts. During the meeting, Chief Minister Yadav also reviewed the relief operation in the areas affected by heavy rainfall in the past two to three days. "Chief Minister took stock of the relief operation and fertiliser during the review meeting and issued necessary instructions to the officials," CM Yadav's office said in a statement issued to the press.
Clashes between farmers and local administrations over fertiliser shortages are common, and they often turn violent, prompting police intervention despite the state government’s claims of an adequate stock. In a fresh instance of violence, protesting farmers in Rewa on Tuesday locked up several government officials, including a Tehsildar, for hours over an alleged shortage of fertiliser, forcing the police to intervene and use mild force to rescue them after dispersing the agitators.
The incident occurred at the Karahiya Mandi fertiliser distribution centre, where farmers were protesting since Tuesday morning over a lack of fertiliser stock and alleged irregularities in the distribution process. The situation escalated when a group of enraged farmers confined officials from the state’s co-operative marketing federation and revenue officials inside a room for several hours. “Some farmers locked the Tehsildar, Nayab Tehsildar, and other market officials in a room while they were distributing fertiliser. Upon receiving information, the police arrived at the scene and used mild force to free them by late night,†the Rewa district administration said on Wednesday.
However, fertiliser distribution resumed on Wednesday morning under the supervision of senior revenue and police officials, with heavy deployment of cops to ensure a peaceful process. “Fertiliser distribution began in the presence of Sub-Divisional Magistrate Vaishali Jain, revenue officials Yashit Shukla and Shankar Shukla, as well as district manager of Markfed Shikha Verma,†Additional Collector Sapna Tripathi, who was present at the site, told IANS.
Rewa district collector also briefed Chief Minister Mohan Yadav during the review meeting on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the opposition Congress has announced to stage a protest in Rewa on Thursday.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Why do these meetings always happen AFTER violence breaks out? The administration should be proactive rather than reactive. Farmers are the backbone of our economy and they deserve better treatment than police intervention during fertilizer distribution 😔
As someone working in agricultural development, I appreciate the CM taking direct review. However, the real issue is distribution corruption and black marketing. Mere meetings won't help unless strict action is taken against those creating artificial shortages.
Good to see the CM addressing both flood relief and fertilizer issues together. Many farmers are dealing with both problems simultaneously. Hope the instructions given today actually reach the ground level and don't remain only on paper ðŸ“
The Rewa incident shows how frustrated our farmers are. Instead of using police force, the government should understand their desperation. Kisan andhiwan hai, unhe samjhana chahiye, dhamkana nahi. They feed our nation after all 🌾
While I understand farmers' frustrations, confining officials is not acceptable. There are proper channels to address grievances. The government needs to ensure transparent distribution systems and farmers need to maintain law and order. Both sides must work together.
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.