The Odisha unit of the Congress party on Tuesday extended its support to a state-wide strike organised by a prominent farmers’ group, scheduled for Wednesday.
The state unit of CPI(M) also declared its backing for the Navnirman Krushak Sangathan (NNKS), the farmers’ organisation that has spearheaded the call for an eight-hour bandh on January 28.
Meanwhile, the BJD appreciated NNKS for highlighting agricultural grievances and mobilising protests.
Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Bhakta Charan Das, in a statement, said that the concerns raised by the NNKS are fundamentally the same as those the Congress has been highlighting through its own agitations across the state.
“The OPCC has resolved to support the bandh called by NNKS on January 28. Accordingly, instructions have been issued to the party’s district-level units,” the statement read.
The NNKS is demanding an input assistance of Rs 800 per quintal for all farmers at state-run mandis, alongside the total removal of millers and middlemen from the current paddy procurement framework.
The strike also serves as a protest against the mandatory installation of smart electricity meters and the high penalties currently levied on vehicle owners under pollution certificate enforcement.
Furthermore, the organisation is opposing the transition from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005, to the newly proposed Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), or VB-GRAM G.
NNKS convenor Akshay Kumar said that the bandh will be observed from 6 am to 2 pm. “All educational institutions, offices, and transport services are expected to remain closed until 2 pm. We appeal to the people to support the cause of farmers and make the bandh a success,” Kumar stated.
However, the NNKS leader said that the strike will not affect essential services, ensuring that hospitals, pharmacies, and ambulance services have been exempted from the bandh.
At a separate press briefing, BJD spokesperson Lenin Mohanty thanked the NNKS for calling the strike, noting that the BJD itself has scheduled a 15-day agitation across the state starting February 2 to address similar agricultural issues.
“Thanks NNKS for taking up the causes of farmers over which issue, the BJD has planned a fortnight-long agitation across the state from February 2,” he said.
When asked if the BJD supported the NNKS bandh call, Mohanty replied, “We have thanked them for fighting for the rights of farmers.”
He elaborated that the BJD is advocating for a paddy price of Rs 3,169 per quintal. This figure incorporates the Rs 800 input assistance and a Rs 69 increase in the Minimum Support Price (MSP).
The Odisha wing of the CPI(M) also urged citizens to cooperate with the protest for the sake of farmer welfare. “The farmers across Odisha are victims of the honeymoon between millers, middlemen and government,” alleged CPI(M) state secretary Suresh Chandra Panigrahi.
The Odisha unit of the BJP dismissed the allegations, asserting that the NNKS strike would fail to have any meaningful impact on the state.
“NNKS is staging a fake farmers’ agitation to maintain its existence in Odisha. Opposition Congress, which has become weak in the state, is trying to gain political mileage by supporting the bandh call,” BJP spokesperson Manoj Mohapatra said.
