Farmers protest concrete lining of canals, stage dharna in Faridkot

Faridkot, November 13

To oppose concrete lining of Indira Gandhi and Sirhind feeder canals, a large number of farmers and residents of the area staged a dharna in front of Faridkot MLA Gurdit Singh Sekhon’s house on Sunday. The protesters are reportedly upset with the MLA for not raising the matter seriously with the state government.

The residents and farmers had urged the MLA to intervene in the matter to stop the concrete lining of the canals, but he had not taken the issue seriously, alleged the protesters.

Denying the allegations, the MLA said he had forwarded all representations given to him by the farmers and residents to the state government. The MLA also claimed that he would meet the CM on Monday to apprise him personally about the seriousness of the issue and its devastating effects on the groundwater and biodiversity of the area.

However, the protesters alleged that the tenders for the concrete lining of the canals had already been allotted and the contractors had started preparations to begin the work. “Our repeated requests to the MLA and the district administration failed to get any response despite the fact that we have repeatedly raised an alarm over the impending crisis and problem,” a resident said.

The protesters, assembled under the banner of Jal Jeevan Bachao Morcha, said the concrete lining would destroy the green cover and rich biodiversity existing along the canals. The concrete lining would affect the groundwater and in turn impact agriculture, besides creating drinking water crisis in the area, they claimed.

More than 20,000 trees would be axed or perish as there won’t be any system for the groundwater to get recharged in the area, alleged the protesters.