By State Congress

Copyright thehindu

Former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Tuesday demanded a special relief package for the State from the Central government saying that 14 lakh acres of agricultural land and 5,200 villages were impacted due to the flood.

Holding a press conference in Delhi, Mr. Hooda said he himself had visited the flood-affected areas, and the situation in half of the State was dire.

“It is unfortunate that the State government has not declared Haryana a flood-affected State. The State government should have demanded a package from the Centre,” he said.

Mr. Hooda was flanked by State Congress president Udai Bhan.

He said 14 lakh acres of crops have been completely destroyed. “Thousands of houses have developed cracks. Shops, buildings and other establishments have been damaged. To make up for all this loss, proper compensation is required, for which the Central government should announce a special relief package for Haryana,” he stated.

Give better deal’

He added that the compensation announced by the State government was inadequate . He said farmers should get ₹50,000-₹60,000 per acre as compensation. A compensation of ₹7,000-₹15,000 per acre is a “mockery” of farmers, he said.

Mr. Bhan also reiterated this demand and expressed displeasure over the attitude of the State government.