Farmers demand Rs 60K per acre relief for loss due to virus in paddy crop

Farmers under the banner of the Haryana Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Morcha and the Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) (Sir Chhotu Ram) on Friday protested in the city, demanding a compensation of Rs 60,000 per acre for the severe crop damage due to the southern rice black streaked dwarf virus.

“The government should conduct a survey and compensate the farmers for the loss they have faced due to the virus,” said Bhadur Singh Mehla, spokesperson of the BKU (Sir Chhotu Ram).

The farmers gathered at the HSVP ground in Sector 12 and marched to the Mini- Secretariat, where they submitted a memorandum of demands to the Naib Tehsildar for Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini.

Spokesperson Mehla said the protest was led by state core committee members Chhatarpal Singh and Jagdeep Aulakh, who also raised the demands of early procurement of paddy from September 15.

Mehla criticised the government over the distribution of DAP and urea to the farmers after the registration on the portal from August 5. “Such decisions are not for the benefits of the farmers and should be taken back,” said Mehla. Aulakh said due the outbreak of virus in paddy crops had stopped the height of the paddy, which would ultimately affect the productivity.

“The government should compensate the farmers at the earliest after conducting a proper survey of the fields,” he added. The farmers also warned that if the government failed to meet their demands, they would gherao the CM’s residence in Kurukshetra on September 1.

They also demanded an MSP guarantee law and curb on fake seeds and pesticides, improved irrigation and rollback of smart meters and hike in power bills.