Tamilisai meets OPS over farmers' deaths

A day after DMK working president M K Stalin called on chief minister O Panneerselvam and discussed the recent suicides of farmers, BJP state unit president Tamilisai Soundararajan on Thursday met the CM over the same issue.

Speaking to reporters, she said, "If the State government announces Tamil Nadu as drought hit, then we can take up the issue with the concerned Union Minister and Prime Minister and prevail upon them to declare the same."

She appealed to the Tamil Nadu government to provide Rs 25,000 compensation per acre for crop loss and Rs 5,000 for farm workers' families as relief assistance.

She led a delegation to meet the CM and discussed with him about farmers' suicides.

Tamilisai said farmers should be part of the high level committees set up by the state government to visit drought-hit areas.

Earlier in a statement, DMK working president M K Stalin accused the state of being indifferent to the growing suicides, even as neighbouring states like Karnataka remained proactive and approached the Centre for assistance.

"I requested the CM to convene a special assembly session to urge the Centre to declare drought," the DMK leader said.