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Rabi season has recorded 78 per cent sowing, highest in the last five years, despite the demonetisation of old Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes caused hardships to the farmers. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said Sunday, “The quick remedial measures by the Centre and the state to provide relief to the farmers to cope with the demonestisation has worked well. It is evident in the statistics with the state registering 78 per cent sowing of crops in Rabi season till November-end. The statistics will be much higher in December.”
Stating that demonestisation will bring greater accountability in the system despite its teething problems, he said, “Fortunately, it has not adversely impacted the agriculture sector. The state government’s decision to extend subsidies through direct benefit transfer to farmers’ accounts, infusing Rs 21,000-crore crop loans through NABARD helped farmers.”
Ahead of the two-week-long winter session of the state legislature that begins in Nagpur on Monday, Fadnavis dwelt on the agriculture sector to pre-empt the Opposition strategy to corner the government on the impact of demonetisation on the agriculture sector.
Throughout the day, it was evident that the Congress, the NCP and the Shiv Sena had decided to make demonestisation a common plank to corner the BJP-led government in Maharashtra in the House.
While Sena MPs have decided to show its might in Mumbai by knocking RBI doors on demonetisation, its MLAs and ministers stood by the Fadnavis government in Nagpur. The strategy is to support the Fadnavis government in the state but attack the Modi government at the Centre.
However, the Congress-NCP coordinated efforts to draw the floor strategy was put on hold as several leaders had not landed in Nagpur on Sunday. While Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil and Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council Dhananjay Munde were present, former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan skipped as AICC asked him to campaign on the anti-demonetisation move in Goa and Bengaluru. NCP’s Ajit Pawar and party president Sharad Pawar were busy planning strategy to consolidate home turf Baramati and Pune in the second phase of local bodies elections to be held this month.
Fadnavis said, “We expect the Opposition to raise serious issues of public concerns. It is our endeavour to tackle the people’s problems, especially in the backward region of Vidarbha, during this session in Nagpur.”
Addressing the media, Vikhe-Patil took a dig at the government, saying: “The BJP-led government’s affairs can be best described to the cartoon network of Doraemon. The cartoon character talks and plans big. But for every problem he has to look for answers from Nobita for solutions.”
Not confining to cartoons, Vikhe-Patil also recited the popular Hindi film song of the yore, Gairon pe karam, apno pe sitam…
Reacting to Vikhe-Patil’s taunts, Fadnavis remarked, “Instead of discussing issues, Opposition leaders appear to be living in the cartoon network of Doraemon and Pokémon.”
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