Farmers hold protest against cess on canal water, land bill
Wednesday, 01/04/2015
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OTHER DEMANDS Seek implementation of the Swaminathan commission report on agriculture and compensation for crops damaged due to rain, hailstorm
FARIDKOT/BATHINDA: Members of the Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta-Sidhupur) staged protests in Faridkot and Bathinda on Tuesday against the water cess imposed by the state government and the land acquisition Act. The protesters also demanded implementation of the Dr MS Swaminathan commission report on agriculture and compensation for crops damaged due to the recent rain and hailstorm. In Faridkot, the protest was held on the premises of the mini-secretariat.
“The BJP had promised in its election manifesto to implement the recommendations of the Swaminathan commission report, which was prepared after two years of studies and evaluation of all agriculture-related problems. But, after it came to power at the Centre, the government submitted in the Supreme Court that the recommendations of the commission cannot be implemented,” said Jagjeet Singh Dallewal, district president of the union while addressing the protesters. “First appointing a commission and then not to implement its report is injustice with the farming community,” the union leader said.
He said that imposition of water cess on canal water, which is meant for irrigation, cannot be justified in any way. “Only 22% land is irrigated by canal water in Punjab while the rest of the land is irrigated by tubewells or other means. So, how could the government charge water cess on 100% area. At the same time, a large amount of water is flowing into Rajasthahn from Punjab and Rajasthan is not paying any cess to Punjab as per the agreement in 1955. But, on the other hand, the state government is imposing water cess on farmers of Punjab,” he alleged.
The other union leaders also condemned the move of the government saying that the government had promised to continue with free water and power supply to the farmers during the election campaigning.
The leaders also spoke against the amendment in the land acquisition and rehabilitation Act2013, passed by the former UPA government. “Under the new Act, the government is going to hand over the land of the farmers to corporate houses. It would lead to several social, economical and other problems for the farming community,” they said.
Meanwhile, members of the BKU (Sidhupur) also staged a protest in Bathinda demanding compensation to the farmers for the loss suffered due to untimely rain and high-speed winds. The farmers gathered at the children’s park here and raised slogans demanding compensation.
District general secretary of the union Mukhtyar Singh said that farmers should be provided compensation at the rate of ` 10,000 per acre for the loss suffered due to inclement weather in March. Besides this, farmers also protested against the new land acquisition bill and the unbundling of the Food Corporation of India.
Meanwhile, a delegation of farmers from Chak Ruldu Singh Wala village submitted a memo of demands to deputy commissioner Basant Garg.
