By The Hindu Bureau
The tradition of offering ‘Bagina’ to Kabini and the Krishnaraja Sagar on the same day was ignored this year which has irked a section of farmers who have criticised the government.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah offered Bagina, the traditional thanksgiving to the river, consequent to the reservoir attaining the full level at the KRS on Monday.
All these years, the practice was to visit the Kabini first, make the offerings, and then visit the KRS to complete the rituals on the same day.
Irked by the Chief Minister offering Bagina only at the KRS, the Karnataka State Sugarcane Growers’ Association president H. Bhagyaraj and others staged a demonstration in Mysuru to voice their protest.
Angered by the CM’s move, Mr. Bhagyaraj said Bagina has been offered hastily at the KRS for political spectacle. But when the water is released to Tamil Nadu during distress years and when Karnataka has to comply with the Supreme Court’s directives, it is the farmers from the Kabini command area whose interests are sacrificed by the government, Mr. Bhagyaraj added.
The farmers also alleged that several illegal resorts have been built along the Kabini backwaters, though none of the development works previously announced by the government have materialised so far.
The farmers also criticised the government for its alleged move to privatise the power sector and said that the installation of smart meters was a step in that direction.
In due course, the installation will be extended to the agriculture sector as well, pushing farmers out of agriculture and facilitating the entry of the corporates to the agricultural sector, said Mr. Bhagyaraj.
Opposing the compulsory installation of smart meters, the farmers urged the government to withdraw the notification failing which the association threatened to launch an agitation.
They urged the government to fix the Fair and Remunerative Price for sugarcane at ₹4,000 a tonne for the current season. Other demands included putting an end to ‘forced land acquisition’ for development, ensuring reparation works of canals and channels in the rural hinterland, and filling up the waterbodies.