Chandigarh, April 14
Former Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition, Bhupinder Singh Hooda has termed the new Gazette notification issued by the Central Government regarding the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) as completely anti-Haryana.
Speaking to reporters, he stated that when Haryana was carved out of Punjab, specific rules for the Board were formally established. These rules included several provisions designed to safeguard Haryana’s interests.
For instance, it was stipulated that the member in charge of Irrigation on the Board would be from Haryana, the member in charge of Power would be from Punjab, and the Chairman would not be from Himachal Pradesh. However, the new decision now states that a member from any state may occupy any of these positions. This raises apprehensions that Haryana’s rights are being trifled with, a concern underscored by the fact that this has happened in the past as well.
Hooda remarked that while the BJP government is failing to secure the SYL water for Haryana on one hand, Haryana’s interests regarding both the Bhakra water allocation and employment opportunities within the Management Board are being consistently ignored on the other.
“What is most unfortunate is that the state’s BJP government remains completely silent on this matter. Even when Haryana’s quota for recruitment within the BBMB was abolished, the state government failed to register any objection,” he pointed out.
Responding to a question regarding the SYL issue, the Leader of the Opposition noted that the Supreme Court had delivered a verdict in Haryana’s favor several years ago. “For several years now, BJP governments have been in power at both the state level in Haryana and at the Centre. Despite this, neither government is making any effort to ensure that Haryana receives its rightful share of water. This constitutes a betrayal of the people of Haryana,” he added.
Reacting to the lack of procurement in the mandis (grain markets), Hooda said the government has ensnared farmers in a web of online portals and restrictive conditions. “Farmers are required to first register on a portal to sell their produce, however, during the peak procurement season, the portal invariably crashes,” he said.
“Subsequently, a ‘gate pass’ is required, a document that cannot be generated precisely because the initial registration process remains incomplete. Even if, after days of arduous struggle, this task is finally accomplished, farmers are subsequently subjected to a myriad of conditions such as biometric verification, tractor registration numbers, background checks, and the requirement for guarantors,” he said.
“In essence, the government has established an entire mechanism designed to deprive farmers of the Minimum Support Price (MSP). The government’s intent appears to be geared more towards perpetrating scams than towards actual procurement, after all, the government committed fraud during the paddy procurement last season, followed by the potato procurement, and now, similar conspiracies are becoming apparent in the procurement of wheat and mustard as well,” he added.
