Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala on Friday attacked the BJP-JJP government in Haryana for its new rice shoot policy, terming it as anti-farmer.
The rice shoot policy was primarily instituted to provide extra water to paddy growers during the monsoon.
Referring to the “anti farmer” conditions in the new policy, Surjewala said according to the policy, no rice shoot will be permitted on all channels in Haryana which has a discharge of less than 10 cusecs of water. “Rice shoot fee has been increased by 100 % to Rs 300 per acre. Rice shoots will not be provided in Haryana on less than 20 acres of land. There will also be a condition that paddy cannot be planted in more than 15 acres of land out of those 20 acres. The new rice shoots have been completely eliminated in the Bhakra Command system with the exception of areas where the Yamuna or Ghaggar river water is available,” he said.
“The quantity of water allocated every year for rice shoots in districts like Yamunanagar, Karnal, Panipat, Jind and Rohtak through Western Jamuna Canal system will get reduced from the existing water share of 25 % to 3 % by 2024,” he said.
Surjewala said it seems that the BJP-JJP government wanted to lock out farmers of Kaithal, Jind, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Ambala and Yamunanagar districts by creating obstacles and restrictions for farming in northern Haryana.
{{/usCountry}}Surjewala said it seems that the BJP-JJP government wanted to lock out farmers of Kaithal, Jind, Kurukshetra, Karnal, Ambala and Yamunanagar districts by creating obstacles and restrictions for farming in northern Haryana.
{{/usCountry}}Quoting the agriculture department data, Surjewala said paddy is cultivated on 35.13 lakh acres in Haryana and the state produces about 5 million tonnes every year. “However, the latest rice shoot policy issued on June 3 intends to destroy paddy cultivation. The goal of this rice shoot policy seems to completely eliminate paddy cultivation in Haryana and hit the farmer hard,” he alleged.
The Congress leader said on one hand the state government shelved the Dadupur Nalvi recharge canal project and on the other rice shoots were being stopped. “Why is it so when excess water is available during the rainy season? Will it not encourage ground water exploitation via tube-wells. It is clear that the BJP-JJP government is following the policy of taking ‘two steps forward and two hundred steps back’, he said.