Senior Congress leader and AICC media incharge, Randeep Singh Surjewala along with party leaders and farmer leaders on Friday met President Ram Nath Kovind to demand withdrawal of Haryana Government’s decision to scrap three decades old Dadupur Nalvi Irrigation Scheme.
Surjewala was accompanied by Gurnam Singh Chaduni, chief of Haryana unit of Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) and other leaders during the meeting held at New Delhi. During the meeting, the Congress leader apprized the President about the project and submitted him a memorandum demanding cancellation of proposed bill sent to him by Haryana Government for scrapping the project.
The BJP led Haryana Government had in September last year scrapped Dadupur Nalvi Irrigation Scheme and had also sought 15 percent interest on the compensation amount to give back the denotifyied 1,019.2994 acres of acquired land to the farmers. Following protest from various quarters, the Manohar lal Khattar Government had later withdrawn the clause of charging15 percent interest to
farmers. While the BJP Government has justified its decision stating that the three decades old irrigation project was not found feasible, various farmers’ outfits and opposition parties have termed the decision as “anti-farmer”.
An amendment Bill for facilitating such de-notification in the Right to fair compensation and transparency in land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement Act, 2013 is pending with the President for assent. However, the State Cabinet had on September 27 ordered de-notification of the land on the grounds of rising land cost due to enhancements ordered by the courts.
In a memorandum submitted to the President, the delegation stated that the decision taken by the Cabinet of Haryana is totally illegal and unconstitutional.
The bill project should not be approved. If it is approved, more than one lakh hectares of land in the country will become barren, the Government's expenditure of Rs 400 crore will be wasted and lakhs of farmers will suffer huge losses and they will not be in the position to return the compensation given by the Government, the delegation stated. While taking to the mediapersons after the meeting, MlA from Haryana, Surjewala said that President has assured us to look into the matter.
The Dadupur Nalvi irrigation project was initiated in year 1985 and it was approved by Government for Rs 13 crores for irrigation and recharging of ground water in the Yamunanagar, Kurukshetra and Ambala districts.
Under this, 2246.53 acre land was to be acquired for construction of this project, out of which a total of 1019.2994 acre land was acquired but it has been denotified now.