Three days ago, the Chandrababu Naidu government in Andhra Pradesh, along with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, launched a Global Horticulture Hub project at Madanapalle in Annamayya district with an estimated investment of Rs 1 lakh crore, claiming that it would transform drought-hit Rayalaseema into a horticultural hub.
However, farmers in Rayalaseema do not appear to be satisfied with announcements and tall claims alone.
On Sunday, they launched a novel protest against the government, using dried-up agricultural fields as a backdrop to highlight the region’s worsening irrigation crisis.
Farmers installed flex banners and placards in barren fields and among withered crops, questioning the government over the availability and utilisation of funds meant for the region’s development.
Slogans such as “Crops are drying up… Where is the Rs 1 lakh crore?” have drawn attention locally and on social media.
The protest comes amid reports of severe rainfall deficiency and inadequate irrigation supplies across several parts of Rayalaseema.
Farmers say horticultural crops, in which they have invested heavily, are drying up due to a combination of poor rainfall and insufficient water from irrigation projects.
Instead of staging a conventional demonstration, the farmers chose their own fields to convey their message. By putting up banners in parched lands and beside dried crops, they sought to show the government the ground reality and the extent of the distress being faced by the farming community.
Photographs and videos of the banners have also circulated on social media, bringing wider attention to the irrigation problem.
Farmers claim that thousands of acres of standing crops are drying up because adequate irrigation water is not reaching the fields.
They have expressed disappointment and anger, saying they invested substantial amounts of money and worked throughout the season, only to see their crops wither before their eyes.
The farmers have urged the government to immediately address the irrigation shortage and ensure water supply to agricultural lands.
With the monsoon failing to provide adequate relief and irrigation supplies remaining insufficient, farmers in the region are demanding urgent government intervention to protect standing crops and provide relief to affected agricultural households.
