Cong's Selja asks Haryana govt to announce compensation package to flood-affected farmers

Chandigarh, Sep 19 (PTI) Congress general secretary and Sirsa MP Kumari Selja has demanded that the Haryana government announce a compensation package to help farmers affected by the recent floods, inundation and waterlogging.

The state government should take appropriate action and announce a separate compensation package to help the affected farmers, Selja said.

She said this time floods and heavy rains have caused huge damage to crops, especially paddy.

The former Union minister said that paddy cultivation in Haryana is primarily carried out in districts such as Karnal, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Ambala, Jind, Yamunanagar, Panipat, Sirsa and Sonipat.

Among these, Karnal, Kaithal, Kurukshetra and Jind are referred to as the rice bowl and Karnal in particular is considered famous for Basmati rice production, she said in a statement.

Kurukshetra is one of the leading districts in paddy production.

Kaithal is also called a rice bowl and is important for rice production.

Ambala is an important belt for paddy cultivation. Paddy is also grown on a large scale in Yamunanagar. In Sirsa too, paddy is cultivated extensively, with emphasis on direct-seeding techniques, she said.

Selja said this year, farmers are in great distress due to the impact of the monsoon -- fields were inundated and remained waterlogged for long periods, causing severe damage to the paddy crop.

On one hand, the grains are small, and on the other, they have blackened, affecting the quality of the rice. Farmers are very worried about the price and yield of Pusa Basmati variety 1509. It does not even look likely that production costs will be recovered, because paddy prices in the market this season are lower compared to last year, she said.

The paddy yield is also much lower than last year, she said, adding that earlier, it used to be up to 30 quintals per acre but it has now shrunk to 20-25 quintals and in some districts, it is as low as 15 quintals per acre.

Meanwhile, Selja recently visited the villages along the Hisar-Drain and witnessed the waterlogged fields and the devastation faced by farmers.

Expressing deep concern over the situation, she wrote a letter to Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on September 15, demanding a permanent solution.

Selja, in a statement on Friday, said that due to the breach of the Hisar-Ghaggar Drain and heavy rainfall recently, thousands of acres of crops, mainly paddy, cotton and millet, have been destroyed in Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa.

Several hamlets had to be vacated and in some places, houses have also been damaged, she said.

Farmers are suffering huge financial losses and are demanding compensation from the government, while the district administration is trying to drain the water and carry out repairs. Vegetable crops have been submerged, she said.

In villages like Gangwa, hundreds of hamlets had to be vacated and some houses were also damaged. This time, heavy rainfall caused the drains to overflow beyond capacity. The breach and overflow resulted in water flooding into the fields and villages, creating massive waterlogging.

Garbage accumulated due to the lack of timely cleaning of the drains, obstructing the flow of water and weakening the embankments, she said.

She said that the demand of farmer organisations for compensation of Rs 50,000 per acre is justified.

Selja urged Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini to ensure a permanent arrangement of strong embankments and drainage systems on both sides of the drain so that farmers do not face such problems in the future. PTI SUN KSS KSS