Senior Congress leader and national media in-charge of the party, Randeep Singh Surjewala on Sunday said Haryana Cabinet’s decision of shelving the Dadupur Nalvi canal project is anti-farmer, illegal and unconstitutional and the Congress party will oppose this anti-people step at all levels.
Describing the Dadupur Nalvi project as lifeline of northern Haryana, Surjewala said the Congress party understood the importance of the project and will ensure its completion.
“The attitude of the BJP Government in the State is completely anti-peasant,” said Kaithal MlA, Surjewala while addressing a ‘farmers’ dharna’ at Shahbad in Kurukshetra. The indefinite hunger strike and ‘dharna’ entered 51st day on Sunday and is being organised as part of the ongoing struggle for saving the crucial Dadupur Nalvi Canal project.
Many former ministers, former MlAs and senior Congress leaders also participated in the day long protest.
Surjewala said, “Rather than paying full compensation to the farmers of Dadupur Nalvi Canal project, the state cabinet cancelled the project. Shelving the project is illegal and unconstitutional as the amendment bill brought in that regard has not yet got the approval from the President of India”, he added.
He said that the Congress is completely with farmers in their struggle and the fight of farmers’ rights in this struggle would be fought firmly inside and outside the assembly besides the courts.
The Congress leader also alleged that the BJP Government in Haryana has bartered the interests of farmers and it was time for a decisive battle against the Manohar lal Khattar Government. The state farmers will give a befitting reply to the Khattar Government for the “treachery”, he added.
Calling the BJP Governments decision another tughlaki farman (diktat), he said that close to a lakh hectare of land of 225 villages of Ambala, Yamunanagar and Kurukshetra will be denied irrigation in a single stroke due to this decision, proving the BJPs apathy towards the poor and the farmers.
Surjewala also reminded that Dadupur-Nalvi Canal project was started by Congress in the year 1985. In October 2005, Congress restarted the project and acquired 1019 acres of land for water recharging and irrigation through construction of Shahbad Feeder, Shahbad Distributory and Nalvi Distributary.
Nearly Rs 200 crore has been paid in compensation for the land alone, besides spending another Rs 111.70 crore in construction of these canals. After spending over Rs 300 crore in restoring the underground water table and providing irrigation, Khattar Government is seeking to destroy the entire project on account of its myopic, parochial and anti-farmer’s approach, added the Congress leader.
Surjewala said that Khattar Government has now become infamous for its unthought and unconsidered ‘tughlaki farmans’. Do the CM and his Government even understand that farmers will have to spend nearly Rs 40 lakh per acre in filling up the canal passing through their land, which is 58ft wide and 30ft deepIJ This is equivalent to the cost of one acre, he said.
In addition, BJP Government wants the farmers to repay entire compensation along with 15 per cent interest per annum. This would mean that farmers will have to sell their remaining land or the Government will confiscate their property. Unfortunately, present Government does not even know that they have constructed a 10 km road on the land acquired for the canal, besides constructing bridges for the national highway, said Surjewala.
Will the Government now uproot the entire road network and newly constructed bridges of the national highway constructed at the cost of crores of rupees of public money and change the alignment of the national highway by seeking fresh permission from Forests, Environment and other agenciesIJ, Surjewala asked.
Shutting down the Dadupur-Nalvi Canal project would automatically mean shutting down of the Saraswati canal project, resulting into further insurmountable loss to the public exchequer, added he.