UP Polls: PM Modi says Yogi govt paid Rs 1.5 lakh cr to sugarcane farmers

New Delhi [India], February 6 (ANI): Reaching out to farmers of western Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that payments made to sugarcane growers by the Yogi Adityanath led state government is far more than what the previous dispensations in Lucknow did for 10 years. PM Modi asserted that payment over Rs 1.5 lakh crore was made to the sugarcane growers by the UP government in the last five years.
"Farmers have not forgotten what they (opposition parties) did when they were in power. They made sugarcane farmers cry. The Yogi Government has paid more than Rs 1.5 lakh crore to sugarcane farmers in the last five years," PM Modi said, while speaking in a 'Jan-Choupal' through a virtual conference.
PM Modi also came down heavily on the Opposition parties, charging that they were attempting to incite the sugarcane farmers with falsehoods. "They are making false promises to farmers, trying to instigate sugarcane farmers by lying to them," PM Modi said.
He also said that for the betterment of UP it is important to keep Samajwadi Party (SP) and its associates (alliance) out of power. PM Modi also launched a veiled attack on SP. "What has been the attitude of the fake socialists for the poor? The previous government had built just 8,000 houses in the urban areas of Agra, Mathura, and Bulandshahr. In contrast, the Yogi government built over 85,000 houses in the three districts," said PM Modi.
Akhilesh Yadav led Samajwadi Party is contesting the upcoming UP assembly election in alliance with Jayant Chaudhary headed Rashtriya Lok Dal and some other small political parties.
Earlier, Home Minister Amit Shah in a bid to woo sugarcane farmers in the state said that the BJP has decided to act against perpetrators if the payment of sugarcane produce gets delayed.
"Some farmers told me that sugarcane payments get delayed. The BJP manifesto will commit that the interest for the delay will be recovered from that mills, and dues for the sugarcane along with interest will be paid to the farmers," Shah had said a few days ago.
Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections will be held in seven phases from February 10 to March 7.
The polling in Uttar Pradesh will be held on February 10, 14, 20, 23, 27, and March 3 and 7. The counting of votes will be done on March 10. (ANI)