Leaders of the AP Farmers’ Association and Tenant Farmers’ Association stage a protest in front of the Collectorate in Vijayawada on Monday.

| Photo Credit: G.N. Rao

The Andhra Pradesh Rythu Sangham along with the Andhra Pradesh Tenant Farmers’ Association have urged the State government to enhance crop loans, increase subsidies on agricultural inputs and provide compensation for crop losses to farmers’ and tenant cultivators before the commencement of the Kharif season.The associations staged a dharna in Vijayawada on Monday and later submitted a memorandum to NTR District Collector Dr. G. Lakshmisha. Addressing the gathering, Tenant Farmers’ Association State general secretary P. Jamalaiah and Rythu Sangham State vice-president Malneedi Yalamanda Rao demanded that the government increase the ‘scale of finance’ in line with rising cultivation costs and extend crop loans up to ₹2 lakh to tenant farmers without insisting on collateral or guarantees.They also sought a supply of seeds for all major crops, including green manure crops, with a 90% subsidy, and called for measures to curb escalating seed prices. The leaders further demanded the immediate release of funds for the Munneru Barrage, Kanchala–Vedadri and Tarakarama Lift Irrigation projects and urged the government to undertake repairs to ensure adequate irrigation water supply. They demanded that ‘Operation Budameru’ be taken up on a war footing to protect farmers from recurring flooding and drainage issues. Referring to the election promises of the NDA government, they sought simplified issuance of cultivation recognition cards to tenant farmers and compensation of ₹21,000 per acre for maize growers under the ‘Price Deficiency Payment Scheme’. They also demanded ₹1 lakh per acre compensation for horticultural crops damaged by the recent unseasonal rains, hailstorms, and strong winds. Among the other demands were increasing the ‘Annadata Sukhibhava’ assistance to ₹50,000, extending benefits to tenant farmers, reducing fertiliser prices, supplying agricultural fuel at ₹35 per litre without taxes, and waiving crop loans up to ₹2 lakh. Farmer and CPI leaders participated in the protest. Published - June 01, 2026 08:25 pm IST