Chandigarh, May 6– Haryana Chief Minister Mr. Manohar Lal has appealed to the farmers of the state to promote water conservation and save water for the future generations in the same way they leave their land as inheritance for their coming generations.

He said that at present if the farmers save water for the future generations, only then the land would be of use to them and with this objective the State Government has launched ‘Mera Pani- Meri Virasat’ scheme today. Under this scheme, farmers who switch to alternate crop in place of paddy during this season would be given an incentive of Rs. 7000 per acre.

The Chief Minister made this announcement while interacting with the people of the State during the 'Haryana Aaj' program, today.

The Chief Minister said that at present some part of the state has become dark zone, which comprises 36 blocks, where rate of depletion of ground water level has doubled in the last 12 years. It means that where the ground water level was earlier at 20 meters, it has now further depleted to 40 meters. He said that there are 19 such blocks, where the water depth has exceeded 40 meters. However, out of these 19, there are 11 blocks in which Paddy is not sown. He informed that eight paddy-rich blocks including Ratia, Siwan, Guhla, Pipli, Shahabad, Babain, Ismailabad and Sirsa, where the depth of ground water level exceeds 40 meters, would be included in this scheme.

He said that the land under the Panchayat, where the depth of ground water is more than 35 meters, permission would not be given to sow paddy in those Panchayat land. Incentive amount would be given to the concerned Gram Panchayat only. He said that apart from these blocks, if the farmers of the remaining blocks also want to stop sowing paddy, then they can apply for the incentive amount by giving information in advance.

He urged the farmers to make up their minds to sow crops which require less water than paddy, such as maize, arhar, urad, guar, cotton, bajra, til and grishm moong (Baisakhi moong), to ensure availability of water for future generations.

He said that agricultural equipment required for maize sowing will also be arranged by the State Government. Apart from this, dryers will be provided in the mandis for maize. He said that 80 percent subsidy is being given to the farmers who have adopted micro- irrigation and drip irrigation system along with growing alternative crops in place of paddy. He said that a few companies would be empanelled to provide the best quality maize seeds to the farmers. He assured the farmers that the State Government would purchase maize and pulses at the minimum support price.

The Chief Minister said to ensure awareness among farmers wide publicity would be given to the water conservation scheme. A web portal would also be developed having all the necessary information about the scheme and efforts would be made to resolve the difficulties faced by the farmers’.

The Chief Minister said that such detailed plans for water conservation should have been made 15 to 20 years ago. He said that the State Government is also ensuring the availability of Haryana’s water share from other states, be it from Lakhwar, Kishau and Renuka dams or Satluj Yamuna Link canal. This is being done so that the water especially reaches south Haryana. He said that arrangements are being made to ensure the availability of drinking water, as well as water for the industries.

The Chief Minister said that the Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi himself had praised Haryana when the State Government had announced the scheme for water conservation last year. He shared that the subject of water conservation is very close to the Prime Minister’s heart and many schemes on this subject are also being run by the Central Government.

Clarifying that no fare is being charged from the migrant labourers who wish to return to their home states, the Chief Minister said that State Government has made elaborate arrangements to send migrant labourers to their home states free of cost in a safe and systematic manner. He said that even today about 1200 migrant labourers have been sent free of cost by special train from Hisar to Katihar, Bihar. He urged the migrants not to believe anyone asking money for the same.

The Chief Minister said that while arrangements to send the migrant agricultural labourers back to their home states have already been made by the State Government and the government is constantly making plans to send others also who are left.

Sharing the details about the procurement, Chief Minister said that the procurement process of Wheat and Mustard is progressing smoothly. So far, more than 50 lakh metric tonnes of Wheat and 4.50 lakh metric tonnes of Mustard have been procured. He said that Rs. 800 crore and Rs. 820 crore have been released by the State Government for payment of Wheat and Mustard.

The Chief Minister also informed that the parole period of prisoners who were released on parole in the month of March have been granted extension in parole for further 5 weeks, as per the information received from Union Home Ministry.

The Chief Minister said that after relaxations, many markets have opened, therefore the people should strictly adhere to the social distancing norms, wear mask and use sanitizers, so that the economic activities can be continued in a smooth manner.