Karnataka govt should immediately open maize procurement centres: Basavaraj Bommai
Gadag (Karnataka) (PTI): Former Karnataka Chief Minister and BJP MP Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday urged the state government to immediately open maize procurement centres and purchase them at a price higher than the Minimum Support Price (MSP) as demanded by farmers.
He said if the demand was not met, farmers would be forced to launch an agitation similar to the one they held for sugarcane.
"Maize is cultivated by farmers across the state covering around 17 lakh hectares of land. The area under maize cultivation is increasing every year. Last year, the total production was 54 lakh metric tonne, and this year too, the production has remained the same. Despite an additional two lakh hectares being brought under cultivation, the yield has not increased proportionately," Bommai said.
He said that maize crops have been damaged in over two lakh hectares, and there has been a lot of discrimination in granting compensation for the loss. The field-cutting survey has not been conducted properly, resulting in many areas being left out even though crops were grown there.
"In some taluks, the survey report claims that only about 10 per cent of the total cultivated area has suffered loss, which is highly unscientific and false. For example, in Mundaragi taluk of Gadag district, even though the survey was conducted, the report says not even one acre has been damaged. Such reports are completely misleading and unjust to farmers," he was quoted as saying by his office in a release.
The BJP MP pointed out that the current MSP of Rs 2,400 per quintal is insufficient, and farmers are already protesting for a higher rate.
"The state government must open procurement centres and start purchasing maize immediately," he urged.
Bommai further said the Karnataka Milk Federation (KMF) uses about 2 to 2.5 lakh tonne of maize annually and it should be ordered to buy directly from farmers instead of purchasing through traders or agents.
"If KMF procures around 2.5 lakh tonne directly from farmers, the market demand will rise and the price will improve. Along with that, the state government must also begin its own procurement. Otherwise, farmers across the state will face severe hardship," he warned.
Reminding that farmers have already submitted memorandums and staged protests, urging the government to act swiftly, he said, "The government should immediately start maize procurement centres and buy maize at a rate higher than the MSP as demanded by the farmers. If this is not done, farmers will have no choice but to launch a strong agitation--just as they did for sugarcane prices."
Leader of Opposition in Karnataka Assembly, R Ashoka, too, demanded that the state government should start maize procurement centers, and as per the demand of the farmers, they should be purchased at a price higher than the MSP.
In a post on 'X', he asked the government to order the purchase directly from the farmers through the KMF to curb the market manipulation by agents and middlemen, and to ensure proper survey and compensation for farmers whose crops have been damaged.
"Otherwise, it will be inevitable for the maize growers to take to the streets and protest like the sugarcane growers did and the BJP will fully support them," he added.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Two arrested in K'taka for assaulting minors, uploading CSAM content
Bengaluru (PTI): Two men were arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls, recording the acts on mobile phones and uploading the videos online as child sexual abuse material, police said on Thursday.
The accused have been identified as Kiran Kumar (29), hailing from Chitradurga district, and Aditya M K (20), hailing from Shivamogga district, they said.
A probe was initiated after information was received from the NCRP portal regarding a suspected instance of creation of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) for online dissemination, police said.
Accordingly, a case was registered at Kaggalipura Police Station under relevant sections of the IT Act on May 10, they added.
Investigation revealed that two minor girl victims were exploited and videos were created and uploaded to the internet. The child victims have subsequently recorded their statements as per procedure and further necessary legal steps have been taken, Pronab Mohanty Director General of Police, Cyber Command, said in a statement.
Based on the statements of the victims, the accused persons, who allegedly assaulted the minors, recorded the acts on mobile phones and uploaded the videos online, were arrested, he said.
Following the probe, sections 65(2) (rape) and 70 (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act, have been added to the FIR, police said.
Officials collected relevant information and on May 12, arrested the accused persons and seized three mobile phones belonging to them, in which the videos had allegedly been recorded, he said.
The accused were later produced before the court and taken into police custody for further investigation, he added.
According to him, in CSAM cases, police usually apprehend offenders who have downloaded such content or have kept them in their possession after obtaining them from elsewhere, usually the internet.
"The present case is one of the very few instances where content creators and uploaders have been apprehended," Mohanty added.
