Jhajjar, April 17
Former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Hooda has said farmers should benefit from the spike in wheat prices in the international market which has reached Rs 3,000-3,500 per quintal. Wheat production has come down by 5 to 10 quintals per acre due to the hot weather this season. The government should give a bonus of Rs 500 per quintal on the MSP to compensate for the loss suffered by the farmers.
Hooda, accompanied by Jhajjar MLA Geeta Bhukkal and Badli MLA Kuldeep Vats, was interacting with mediapersons after releasing a book here today.
He said there had been a substantial increase in the input costs of farmers. “The cost of farming has increased tremendously in the past few years due to the weather and inflation. During the Congress government, no tax was imposed on the farmers’ fertilisers, seeds, medicines or farming equipment, but the BJP government has imposed heavy taxes on all these things. During the Congress tenure, Haryana used to get cheaper petrol and diesel than neighbouring states. Therefore, every petrol pump along the border of the state used to have a board of the cheapest oil. But now, diesel is cheaper in many neighbouring states, including Delhi. This has increased the cost for farmers,” he said.
On the panchayat elections, Hooda said the government was running away from panchayat and municipal elections because it does not believe in Mahatma Gandhi’s gram swaraj. On a question about SYL and Chandigarh, the former CM said he would continue to fight for the interests of the state. “The water of SYL is the right of Haryana and it should be given to us. It is the responsibility of the state and central government to implement the decision of the Supreme Court,” he added.
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