Cong, INLD take on govt for delay in relief for cotton loss

Pradeep Sharma

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 30

The Congress and the INLD today put the BJP Government on the mat for ‘undue delay’ in the release of compensation to farmers for cotton crop losses due to whitefly.

Leading the opposition attack during discussion on the calling-attention motion on the issue, Kiran Choudhry, Leader of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP), alleged that the BJP Government was clearly ‘anti-farmer’ as farmers were passing through a severe financial crunch due to the delay in the release of compensation for cotton crop loss. “Nearly 14 districts of the state were affected due to whitefly attack on cotton and other crops like guar and bajra forcing farmers to obseve a black Diwali,” she asserted.

Leader of the Opposition and senior INLD leader Abhay Chautala regretted that the state government had failed to come out with a clear-cut policy for compensating farmers, who had suffered losses due to whitefly. “Certain areas of the state had suffered nearly 100 per cent crop loss,” he claimed.

Ranbir Gangua (INLD) alleged that despite Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar’s assurance that the girdawari, which was to be started on September 15, would be completed by September 30, it was completed around October 31. Even after that, the affected farmers were still waiting for compensation as special girdawari had now been ordered, he alleged.

Putting up a spirited defence, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Capt Abhimanyu claimed that the special girdawari by senior officers of the state government had been ordered on account of certain complaints in the earlier girdawari.

“The Opposition had no locus standi in dubbing the state government as anti-farmer as a record compensation of nearly Rs1,100 crore—which was more than the compensation paid by the Hooda Government in the past 10 years – has been paid for the cross loss in the last crop season,” he asserted.

Agriculture Minister OP Dhankar, who blamed the crop loss on mono-cropping, allayed the Opposition’s fear adding that adequate compensation would be paid to the affected farmers after getting the final girdwari report on crop loss.

Sidelights 

• To a question by Congress MLA Karan Dalal on whether or not the government was contemplating a ban on the sale of items made out of calf leather, Agriculture Minister OP Dhankar said the cow protection law passed unanimously by the House clearly stated there was no ban on the skinning of dead cows. “They are the kind of people who want to divert a well-intentioned law to rake up mischief. Yeh aise log hain jo kahengay ki gaye ka doodh mat nikal, uskay than ko mat chuo,” he said.
• Health Minister Anil Vij, giving his side of the story on the spat with IPS officer Sangeeta Kalia, said he wasn’t even aware that she was a Dalit. “Kalias are Brahmins. It is the people who made her a Dalit,” he said
• Taking a dig at Vij while he was saying he would explain everything that transpired at the Farehabad meeting at length, Karan Dalal said, “Yahan kehte ho sab jawab dunga aur SP hatake saamnay maidan chhodd diya (You say you will answer in the House. But by getting the SP transferred, you have given up).”
•  Vij and Dalal took turns to take swipes at each other. The Health Minister tried to ridicule him by saying, “Teri taaqat bahut dekhi hai (I have seen what you are capable of).” Dalal hit back: “Iskay muh meing zuban nahi hoti thi  (He never used to speak so much).”