Imagine a distraught farmer being paid Rs 47 as compensation for crop loss in Jammu division.
Imagine a distraught farmer being paid Rs 47 as compensation for crop loss in Jammu division.
It is not a fairy tale but reality is such in restive Jammu and Kashmir. Farmers have been given compensation cheques ranging from Rs 47 to Rs 400 for crop loss suffered during last year's devastating floods at Saroora village in Marh block of Jammu district.
Floods washed away entire crops paddy/basmati and poultry farms in Marh block last year. The government was quick to promise adequate compensation to the distraught farmers so that they could rebuild their lives again.
Come May, the farmers were in for a rude shock when cheques as low as Rs 32 were issued to compensate their losses. Sample this: Farmer Ram Das got Rs 94, Bachan Singh and Nagar Singh got cheques for Rs 94 each and Shamsher Singh was given a cheque for Rs 47. Farmer Karan Singh was lucky as he got a cheque for Rs 113.
"I suffered loss of Rs 15,000 as my Basmati crop over two kanals (20 kanals form one hectare) of land was washed away. But I was given a cheque for Rs 50," said Balbir Saini, a marginal farmer.
"A poultry farm owner was paid a cheque for Rs 400 when 4,000 of his birds were washed away in the devastating floods. Another poultry farmer also got a Rs 400 cheque as compensation for the loss of Rs 3 lakh," added Vijay Kumar Sharma, sarpanch of Marh village.
The Jammu and Kashmir government, however, defended the compensation saying the cheques were distributed after assessing the losses and verification by the revenue department and panchayati raj institutions.
"There are hardly one or two per cent of farmers who got the cheques for Rs 100 or less. In Jammu district we assessed loss of Rs 11 crore in the September floods. Subsequently it was put to review by the revenue department for verification of records. Then the district development commissioner released Rs 5 crore to chief agriculture officer Jammu for distribution," SS Jamwal, director agriculture Jammu, told dna.
Jamwal said the government has fixed a compensation of Rs 9,000 for one hectare of land. "It works out to Rs 450 per kanal given that 20 kanals form one hectare of land. Since government released 42 per cent of the estimated money, we distributed it among each beneficiary. This is only meant for the marginal farmers, who have land less than one hectare," he said.
The farmers' plight aside there is good news for the people of Jammu and Kashmir as the World Bank Board approved the $250 million Jhelum and Tawi Flood Recovery Project for reconstruction and recovery support to flood-affected areas in which public infrastructure and livelihoods were impacted severely.
The continuous spell of rains in September last year, caused Jhelum, Chenab and Tawi rivers including their tributaries and many other streams to flow above the danger mark.
The Jhelum River breached its banks at several places. Over a million families were affected, directly or indirectly, and some 300 lives were lost. More than 648,000 hectares of agricultural and horticultural land were affected causing huge loss to crops, plantations and animals.
"This region is highly vulnerable to natural disasters that can push millions to poverty. In addition to reconstruction, which includes reconstruction of roads, bridges and public infrastructure, the Project will also help the region to be better prepared for the future," said Onno Ruhl, World Bank country director in India.
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