SANGHAR, July 24: Farmers’ organizations and Nazimeen of different union councils have expressed their resentment over the Revenue Department’s recovery drive in the calamity-hit areas despite the one-year exemption granted by the Relief Commissioner (RC), Sindh.
Muhammad Laghari and Samo Khan Dahri, president and general secretary respectively of the Sindh Abadgar Board, Sanghar, Hassan Askari, general secretary of the Small Growers’ Association, and Nazimeen of different union councils — Faisal Wassan (Shahdadpur), Shahid Thaheem (Manak Thaheem), Raja Shahid (Gujri) and Dr Hashim Khaskheli (Jhal) — told Dawn on Wednesday that in fact, no relief had been provided to the farmers badly affected by the drought and shortage of irrigation water in the areas specified in the RC notification.
The RC notification, they said, had declared 39 dehs of Thatta, Mirpurkhas, Badin, Ghotki, Sanghar, Larkana, Jacobabad, Sukkur, Khairpur and Shikarpur besides 35 dehs of the defunct Malir district and the entire Tharparkar and Dadu districts as calamity-hit areas under the provision of section-3 of Sindh National Calamities (Prevention and Relief) Act 1958.
However, they added, the notification was misinterpreted by the provincial secretary of the Revenue Department, Manzoor Hussain Bhutto, vide his letter, dated June 15. They pointed out that the secretary had mischievously separated the current Kharif (2001-2002) season crops from the head of ‘past year dues’ and started the recovery campaign.
The growers said that the secretary’s interpretation of the RC notification had deprived the affected people of their benefits in respect of the Kharif crop.
Hassan Askari insisted that all the government dues had to be either waived off or postpone for one year automatically once an area is notified under the section 3 of the Act.
He lashed out at the revenue department for evolving its own interpretation of the notification.
The growers said they had already paid all the dues of Kharif (mainly cotton) of 2001 and the worst affected was Rabi (mainly wheat) of 2001-02. They referred to the concerned minister’s statements who admitted a 70 per cent shortage of water during the Rabi crop.
They contended that the previous cotton crop had not covered even the cost of production due to low prices. Same was the wheat crop, they added, which was badly hit by water shortage and law prices.
The growers regretted that revenue officials, along with police, were forcibly collecting Dhal, Abiana, local funds, land tax, drainage cess and other government dues from the farmers who were starving.
The campaign, coupled with that of the ADBP, had started hide-and-seek between their officials and the poor farmers, they said adding that raids were being carried out even at funerals and ceremonies to harass the borrowers.