New Delhi : The Telangana government announced a compensation of Rs 3 lakh each for the families of over 750 farmers who died during the protest against the three agricultural laws.

Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao said that the Centre should also give the families Rs 25 lakh exe-gratia and withdraw all the cases filed against them.

Rao’s announcement came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a televised address to the country that the three laws, which faced vociferous protests, will be repealed.

Farmers, mainly from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, have been staging demonstrations at Delhi’s border entry points for nearly a year to push for the withdrawal of the laws, which they fear would make them vulnerable to corporate exploitation.

People lauded the farmers for their sustained protest. The Opposition also celebrated the protestors but pointed out
that the Centre decided to rollback the laws because it was worried about the impending elections in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Both the states will go to poll early next year.

Rao said that the Centre had realised its mistake and he called on the government to enact a law to ensure that the farmers get minimum support price for their crops.