HAIL-STORM AFFECTED FARMERS IN TERRIBLE PLIGHT—AJAY MAKEN.

HAIL-STORM AFFECTED FARMERS IN TERRIBLE PLIGHT—AJAY MAKEN.
NEW DELHI, March 24—Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) president Shri Ajay Maken and in- charge of Delhi Shri P.C.Chako today visited the villages affected by the recent hail storm, which destroyed the crops, at Bajitpur, Katewra and Qutabgarh in the Bawana Assembly segment, and listened to the plight of the farmers. Shri Ajay Maken started from Bawana and visited villages Bajitpur, Katewra and Qutabgarh. He was accompanied by ex-MP Shri Sajjan Kumar, Dr Yoganand Shastri, ex-MLA from Bawana Shri Surender Kumar, Rajendra Joon, Pt Umed Prakash, Brahm Yadav, Chattar Singh, Hari Shankar Gupta, Kunwar Karan Singh, Anil Bharadwaj and Brajmohan Sharma. A large number of farmers came out of their homes to explain their plight to the DPCC leaders, led by Shri Ajay Maken. The farmers said the recent hail-storm had completely destroyed their crops, leaving them shattered, as nothing could be salvaged. Many farmers had cultivated on leased land, and the destruction to their crops have left them in deep debts.
The farmers, explaining their terrible situation to Shri Ajay Maken and other Congress leaders, said the destruction of their crops have completely ruined them, but no leader either from the BJP-led Central Government or from the Aam Aadmi Party’s Delhi Government had visited them to assess their losses, or announced any compensation for them. So much so, the local MP and MLA had not even bothered to visit the farmers to enquire about the losses suffered by them due to the hail-storm.
After visiting these villages, Shri Ajay Maken said the plight of the farmers was really bad, as the damages
to their crops have completely ruined them. He said the saddening part was that nobody from neither the BJP-led Central Government nor the Aam Aadmi Party-ruled Delhi Government had bothered to visit these villages to asses the farmer’s plight, and announce compensation for the damages to their crops. Shri Maken said the Government should immediately announce compensation to the farmers for the losses to their crops. He said the representatives of the Central and Delhi Government should immediately visit the villages of Bawana to assess the damage to the crops, and compensate the farmers. Shri Maken said in 1998, during the regime of the Congress Government, the Government had promptly announced compensation to the farms whose crops had been destroyed by hail-storm in Narela.
Shri Ajay Maken demanded that the Delhi Government should provide electricity to the farmers at the rate of 10 paise per unit to run their tubewells, and fertilizers should be given to them at a reasonable rate. The Pradesh Congress has asked Shri Surender Kumar to submt a report to the DPCC after talking to the farmers about the damage to their crops and other losses suffered by them. Shri Maken said that report will be submitted to Congress president Smt. Sonia Gandhi. Later, copies of the report would also be submitted to the Lt. Governor of Delhi and the President of India.
Shri Maken said the plight of the farmers was very pitiable, and the Central and Delhi Government should rise above petty politics to help out the farmers to enable them tide over the present crisis.