TDP chief attacks UPA over prise rise

Criticising the UPA for not being able to "visualise beyond today", the Telugu Desam Party today said the country would be pushed into a severe food crisis if attention is not paid to the agriculture sector.

Criticising the UPA for not being able to "visualise beyond today", the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) on Tuesday said the country would be pushed into a severe food crisis if attention is not paid to the agriculture sector.

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"The Government of India is not concentrating on agriculture. There are no policies on agro-processing or post-harvest technologies. There are no incentives for the farmers to encourage higher production and productivity. All this has pushed agriculture sector into doldrums," TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu said in Hyderabad.

Talking to reporters at the party headquarters 'NTR Bhavan', Naidu ridiculed the Centre's claim that foodgrains would be imported from abroad to meet the shortages in the country.

"No country can supply foodgrains to India as other countries too are facing food shortage," he said.

"More than 40 per cent of our agricultural produce is going waste every year because we do not have proper infrastructure for storage, transportation and even post-harvesting", he added.

"In addition, climate change is also leading to drop in agricultural production. This is the biggest challenge the Government of India has to tackle," Naidu said.