“The Opposition had extended complete support to the government for the fight against coronavirus, but we were forced to oppose the government after it took a series of anti-farmer decisions,” Hooda said while interacting with media persons in Kurukshetra. (Express photo by Kamleshwar Singh)
Former Chief Minister and Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Monday questioned the policies of the Haryana government, calling it “shifty” and “anti-farmer”. Hinting that things were not cordial within BJP’s Haryana unit, he also asked state Home Minister Anil Vij to “speak up” if his own government “does not listen to him”.
In the past, Vij had been quite vocal about not being in favour of allowing mass relaxations during the Covid-19 lockdown. He had also said in the past that he was not consulted before permitting relaxations.
“The Opposition had extended complete support to the government for the fight against coronavirus, but we were forced to oppose the government after it took a series of anti-farmer decisions,” Hooda said while interacting with media persons in Kurukshetra.
“The government withdrew its decision of paddy ban after a sustained campaign by the farmers and opposition parties. While the government has been forced to let go of the elephant, it is still holding on to the elephant’s tail. It should withdraw the ban on paddy cultivation on panchayat land in times of pandemic. Instead of imposing restrictions on farmers and panchayats, it should resume a project like Dadupur-Nalvi to conserve groundwater,” Hooda said.
“The problem of groundwater can be solved only when the groundwater is recharged and recounted the schemes initiated under the Congress government. The current government should replicate projects like digging the Rakhsi river, Saraswati river, Khand Nala, Otu Lake Sirsa, Bibipur Lake, Kotla Lake Mewat, ponds, drains and canals like Congress term. Rather than running schemes that would recharge groundwater in deficit areas, the government is looking at shutting down projects like Dadupur-Nalvi and cutting down grants for drip irrigation and drip pipelines. This time the monsoon is expected to last longer, so arrangements should be made to store rain water in advance. The government should try to ensure that farmers do not face any problem during the coronavirus pandemic. The government should clear the pending payment of wheat and sugarcane immediately and compensation should also be paid soon for losses suffered due to hailstorms and unseasonal rain,” suggested the former chief minister.
Speaking about the liquor theft scam probe, Hooda said, “Far from an impartial probe in the liquor scam, the government has not yet been able to decide whether the investigation will be done by Special Investigation Team or Special Enquiry Team. The government itself does not listen to its Minister Anil Vij.”
He further said, “Anil Vij is our old friend but I wish to ask him why does he speak if his own government does not listen to him? The situation is such that a new scam is unfolding even before investigations begin in the old scam. The contractors are selling liquor at an arbitrary rate. The government has increased the rate by Rs. 10 to Rs. 50 per bottle but the contractors are overcharging Rs. 200 to 400 per bottle. Liquor shops have not put up a rate list and there is no billing and no investigation.”
Hooda also lashed out at the state government for retrenchment of employees. “Our youth are not being given jobs and are waiting for the recruitment. Efforts are being made to cancel nine categories of recruitment including TGT (English). PGT Sanskrit candidates are not being given a joining date. No relief has been given to small and medium scale industries to ensure that they are able to provide some support and relief to their employees. This is the reason that the unemployment rate in the state has reached 43 per cent today,” Hooda alleged.
The Congress leader also expressed concern over the rising number of Covid cases in the state. “The government should pay attention to complaints from many places that patients are not being looked after properly.”