Haryana govt betraying farmers by postponing wheat procurement: Surjewala

Senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala on Friday accused the Haryana government of betraying farmers by postponing wheat procurement, saying it had promised the doubling of farm income by 2022.

He said the statement of Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar that the farmers should harvest their wheat crop and store it in their homes for the next three weeks is like "rubbing salt into their wounds".

"The BJP-JJP government was now planning a conspiracy with farmers by postponing the wheat procurement, which was to begin on April 1, in three phases up to June 30," Surjewala said.

"The chief minister is telling farmers to store wheat in their homes...his deputy Dushyant Chautala (also the excise minister) seemed to be more concerned about the health of alcoholics as the liquor vends were kept open in Haryana despite a lockdown," he alleged.

 

The liquor vends were shut down from March 27 after the state government came under heavy criticism from various quarters, including the opposition Congress for keeping them open even during a lockdown enforced to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

With the 21-day nationwide lockdown in place to check the spread of coronavirus, Khattar had on Thursday said, "As we know that it is not possible to procure till April 14, we have made changes in dates of procurement."

"From April 15, procurement of mustard will be done while wheat will be procured from April 20. We will begin our procurement on these dates if situation normalizes by then."

Khattar had also said as ripened crops of mustard and wheat cannot be left in the fields by then, the farmers have been advised to stock the produce as much as possible in their homes while instructions have been given to state agencies like the Marketing Board to assist farmers in stocking produce.

Surjewala, in a statement here, said it was "shocking" that the Bharatiya Janata Party-Jannayak Janata Party government would not start the wheat procurement up to April 20.

"The anti-farmer BJP-JJP government is deliberately ignoring the important aspect that the farmers of Haryana sell their wheat crops from April 1 to 20 in grain markets, which has been the practice and experience of all the previous years.

"In such a situation, how the farmers can afford to not to harvest the crops or sell the grains in the market," he asked.

Surjewala said Khattar and Chautala should understand that if the farmers would not harvest the crops, their standing crops would get destroyed.

"Does the BJP-JJP government not know that the farmers cannot store wheat in their houses for long because 95 per cent of farmers own less than 5 acres of land and most of them have existing debts of present crops. They have to pay and arrange for sowing of their next crops," the Congress party's chief spokesperson added.