Giving a relief to those whose residential and commercial properties were damaged during the recent Jat quota agitation in the State, Haryana Government on Thursday decided to waive off the house tax and water tariff on such properties for one year.
The State Cabinet which met under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Manohar lal for the second consecutive day took a decision in this regard. A day before, the State Government had decided in principle to give relief in VAT to such traders and businessmen who suffered losses during the Jat agitation. Directions were given to Excise and Taxation Department to examine the matter.
To tone down the anger in Haryana’s residents, State Government has swung into damage control mode and in the past one week, has announced a number of measures to provide relief to the affected families besides transferring a large number of police and civil officers who had failed to maintain law and order situation in the State.
The Manohar lal Government had also announced to waive off electricity dues for the current and next billing cycles of all those consumers whose houses or commercial properties were damaged or looted during the agitation from February 15 to 22.
Haryana Cabinet Minister Ram Bilas Sharma while talking to the mediapersons after the Cabinet meet said that giving a major relief to those affected during the agitation, Haryana Government has decided to waive off the house tax and water tariff on such properties for one year.
The Government is making efforts to provide assistance to affected families and is hopeful that such measures would be a major relief for them, said he.
On the issue of inquiry into the apathy of police officials in handling the Jat agitation that turned violent in several parts of the state, the Cabinet Minister said that the former DGP of Uttar Pradesh, Prakash Singh, who had been appointed to probe the acts of omission and commission on the part of officers and officials, has started his probe.
Admitting that many police officials failed to fulfill their duty during the Jat stir, Sharma said that strict action would be taken against those found guilty during the inquiry.
The Jat agitation which had left 30 dead and more than 200 injured in the state had forced the State Government to cancel its maiden ‘Pravasi Bharatiya Divas' to be held here on March 9 in Gurgaon while it would go ahead with Happening Haryana' Global Investors Summit’ to be held on March 7-8.
Reacting on the comments of Karnal MP Ashwini Chopra that state would not get any investments now, following the violent Jat agitation, Ram Bilas Sharma said that the State Government is quite hopeful that the summit would attract good response. As a result of Chief Minister’s visit to US, Canada, Japan and China and during the road shows held at Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai in the run-up to the Summit, entrepreneurs have shown keen interest in investing in the State.