BHUBANESWAR: Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president and chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday accused the Centre of having no sympathy towards the farmers of Odisha.

“The Union government has no time to deal with the problems of Odisha farmers,” Mr Patnaik said, addressing a series of election meetings at Atabira, Padmapur and Bargarh, where polling is scheduled to take place on April 18.

Noting that the Bharatiya Janata Party in its 2014 manifesto promised to double the minimum support price (MSP) of paddy, he said the state government waited for its implementation.