Telangana Recorded Zero Farmer Suicides in 2024-25, Says CM Revanth Reddy
Bengaluru, June 7(TNT): Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has said the state had achieved a significant milestone by recording zero farmer suicides during 2024-25, according to data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).
Participating in an interaction with N. Ram, Director of The Hindu, at The Hindu Huddle session titled “By, For, and Of the People: Good Governance for Telangana” in Bengaluru on Saturday, the Chief Minister said Telangana had earlier ranked among the states with the highest number of farmer suicides, largely due to mounting debt burdens on cultivators.
Highlighting the measures undertaken by the Congress government over the past two years to support distressed farmers, Reddy said farm loans amounting to ₹20,616 crore had been waived, benefiting 25.03 lakh farming families across the state.
He described it as the largest farm loan waiver programme implemented in the country.
The Chief Minister said the government had also taken steps to ensure remunerative prices for agricultural produce. While farmers previously struggled to secure the Minimum Support Price (MSP), the state government now guarantees MSP and provides an additional bonus of ₹500 per quintal to paddy farmers.
Criticising the Centre’s approach towards agricultural procurement, Reddy alleged that the Union Government merely announces MSP without taking adequate responsibility for procurement operations.
“The Centre announces MSP and washes its hands of the matter. Our government is actively procuring paddy, maize and other crops from farmers,” he said.
The Chief Minister also highlighted the state’s Rythu Bharosa scheme, under which eligible farmers receive ₹12,000 per acre as investment support to meet cultivation expenses such as the purchase of seeds, fertilisers and other agricultural inputs.
Reddy said the combination of loan waivers, investment assistance, assured procurement and bonus payments had strengthened the rural economy and reduced financial stress among farming communities.
He maintained that the government’s farmer-centric policies were yielding positive results and contributing to improved agricultural welfare across Telangana.
TNT KS
