Haryana's main opposition Congress on Sunday said unseasonal rainfall in many parts of the state had damaged harvested wheat crop lying in the grain markets and fields and demanded relaxation in quality norms for the crop procurement.
Senior Congress leader and chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala demanded the relaxation in moisture content specifications for the wheat procurement "from 12 to 18 per cent".
Surjewala, who visited the rain-affected grain market in Kaithal, criticised the state government for its alleged mismanagement in wheat procurement.
"This led the farmers to suffer the double blow of tardy wheat procurement and moisture element due to unseasonal rains," he said.
The Congress leader claimed that Haryana's farmers are feeling "betrayed" and "cheated" by the complete "recklessness, insensitivity and inhuman treatment" being meted out to them by the state government.
"The state government has not even made arrangements to cover the wheat crop with tarpaulin sheets that is lying in the open in grain markets and procurement centres," he said, adding that there reports of water-logged grain markets in Karnal, Nising, Jundla, Gharaunda, Assandh, Nilokheri, Kaithal, Guhla Cheeka, Pundri, Pehowa, Yamunanagar, Rohtak and a number of other towns in the state.
He said Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and his Deputy Dushyant Chautala must come forward and assure Haryana's farmers that they will buy each and every single grain of wheat "with 18 per cent moisture as a special measure in light of the untimely rains".
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