Coimbatore: Farmers in Coimbatore region on Friday threatened that they would resort to mass suicides if government went ahead with its plan to increase power tariff. Representatives of various farmers associations told a public hearing on tariff revision here that the agriculture sector in Tamil Nadu is already in the doldrums due to failure of monsoon and resultant drought.
"Any upward revision of tariff will be strongly resisted by all farmers in the state, who, as part of their fundamental rights, are receiving free government subsidised power," Balasubramanian, secretary, Tamilaga Vyavasaigal Sangham (Tamil Nadu Farmers Association) said. He said failure of monsoon and farmers's failure to repay agricultural loans had already led to some suicides in various parts of Tamil Nadu. Marginal farmers would suffer the most if there was a hike in power tariff, leaving them with no option but to resort to mass suicides.
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03:15 AM, May 18, 2013
Mumbai: Whoever said that celebrities don't care about what's going on in the real world, Salman Khan will make them rethink that. He has promised to donate 2,500 water tanks to drought-hit districts in Maharashtra, which is facing its worst drought in 40 years. Across Maharashtra, it has been a devastatingly dry summer as more than 11,000 villages grapple with the worst drought in four decades. But there might be...
10:09 AM, May 13, 2013
Salman Khan's Being Human Foundation has send water tankers to drought hit villages in Maharashtra, so that people have facility to store water and do not face much water shortage. ...
11:00 PM, May 08, 2013
New Delhi: The Empowered Group of Ministers on Drought, headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, on Wednesday approved an additional assistance of Rs 256 crore for rejuvenation of orchards in drought-hit Maharasthra. However, the decision on extension of duty-free import of oilcakes to boost fodder supply was left to the Finance Ministry, which will take a call after assessing the demand and supply situation. "The proposal on providing additional assistance...
12:28 PM, May 08, 2013
The usual dusty small-town India greets us as a small group of people associated with the NGO Caring Friends travel over two-and-a-half days through Aurangabad and Jalna to understand the problems in the region and what help could be given. On the face of it, people seem to be going about their normal life. Where are the signs of distress that we had read in the media? Don't girls and...
11:08 PM, May 06, 2013
Jamwadi: India may be heading for another bumper grain harvest, if the first forecast for this year's monsoon proves correct, but the rain may be too little - and too late - for southern and western states already parched by the worst drought in four decades. Although 2012 monsoon rains were, overall, just seven per cent below normal, these states - including major sugar producer Maharashtra and cotton-growing Gujarat -...
06:23 AM, Apr 24, 2013
New Delhi: The government on Tuesday said the country would meet the target of producing 254.23 million tonne foodgrain in 2012-13 despite drought in some parts of the country. India could not achieve the food production target in 2009-10 due to severe drought in many states. However, it had met the target since 2010-11. "Despite drought in some parts of the country in 2012-13, foodgrain production is on course to...
03:47 AM, Apr 24, 2013
Mumbai: Describing the next two months as a very difficult period for the drought-affected areas of Maharashtra, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Thursday said the state government was making all efforts to ensure adequate water supply to the affected areas. "Our water tankers will reach all villages and hamlets facing water scarcity," Chavan told reporters at Vidhan Bhavan. "The next two months are going to be a very difficult period...
10:59 PM, Apr 18, 2013
Nearly 4,000 villages in Sami in north Gujarat face a drought-like situation with no water to drink. People are being forced to dig pits and consume unsafe water. ...
10:33 PM, Apr 18, 2013
More than 12,000 villages in Maharashtra are battling acute drought. At such a time when they thought the state government will bring them some relief, the following statement of deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar has shocked all. Pawar said, "Somebody is there on a fast for 55 days now. His name is some Deshmukh. He is asking us to release water from dams. How could one do that? We don't...
08:05 PM, Apr 15, 2013
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government faced fire in the Bombay High Court on Monday over its handling of the drought situation. Hearing a petition from two farmers in Solapur, the court said the drought situation has worsened due to government inaction. The court had last week asked the Maharashtra government to release water from two dams to the Ujni Dam. Although the government has started releasing water to the Ujni Dam,...
03:41 PM, Apr 15, 2013
Mumbai: Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar has called for the controversy surrounding his nephew and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar to die down. Ajit Pawar had ruffled feathers by his 'urine' remark on the Maharashtra drought situation. "As party president, I will say that Ajit Pawar's statement was improper and unfortunate. He should have been more careful given the position that he is in. Now that he has...
02:17 PM, Apr 13, 2013
Ahmedabad: Through this summer, CNN-IBN will focus on the acute water shortage that is gripping large parts of the country. In areas like North Gujarat, where those who were promised water from the Narmada canals are still waiting for relief. Even as Chief Minister Narendra Modi talks of his Gujarat model of governance across the nation, back in the state, even before the summer has set in, water shortage is...
09:05 AM, Apr 13, 2013
New Delhi: Millions of people in Maharashtra are at serious risk of hunger after two years of low rainfall, coupled with poor management of water resources, have left dams empty, farmland parched and cattle emaciated, aid agencies warned on Thursday. Maharashtra -- one of the country's biggest producers of sugar, pulses, cotton and soybeans -- is reeling from the worst drought in more than four decades after receiving less than...
06:20 AM, Apr 13, 2013
Mumbai: NCP on Friday said that its leader and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's controversial remarks on drought and load-shedding were a "closed chapter", and he would not resign. "For us, it is a closed chapter. Ajit Pawar has already apologised and there is no question of he resigning," state NCP chief Madhukar Pichad told reporters after a party meeting, attended by party supremo and Union Minister Sharad Pawar and...
04:43 AM, Apr 13, 2013
Ahmedabad: A swimming pool in Ahmedabad is creating waves of controversy. The Gujarat University Vice Chancellor, Adesh Pal, is building a private pool with a capacity for 72,000 litres of water. Political activists have hit out at him saying this is blatantly insensitive given that thousands of villages in the state are drought hit. Many are questioning the estimated cost of Rs 20 lakh for the pool, while the university...
07:53 AM, Apr 12, 2013
Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar is still facing ire over his urine remark over the drought situation. ...
07:51 PM, Apr 11, 2013
There was uproar in the Maharashtra Assembly for the third consecutive day, the Opposition is demanding deputy CM Ajit Pawar's resignation over his controversial 'urine' comment. ...
11:59 PM, Apr 10, 2013
Mumbai: Even as Maharashtra faces one of its worst droughts in four decades and people are forced to drink dirty water, thousands of litres of water was wasted during Maharashtra Forest Minister Patangrao Kadam 's visit to Marathwada region on Tuesday. Kadam visited Aurangabad on Tuesday to meet BJP leader Gopinath Munde, who is sitting on a fast against Maharashtra government's policy to tackle drought, and convince him to end...
03:38 PM, Apr 10, 2013
Mumbai: There was an uproar in the Maharashtra Assembly for the third consecutive day as the Opposition demanded Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's resignation over his controversial 'urine' comment. The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena has hit the streets of Mumbai in protest urging Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan to sack Ajit Pawar. On Tuesday, the Maharashtra Speaker had rejected the Opposition's demand for a censure motion against Ajit Pawar. Meanwhile, a urinal...
02:57 PM, Apr 10, 2013
