Finance Commission chairman’s visit fails to apply balm, farmers to gherao Parliament on Dec 16The visit of 13th Finance Commission chairman Vijay L Kelkar to the border areas on Friday notwithstanding, farmers in villages along the Indo-Pak border are set to intensify their agitation to seek compensation for land beyond the barbed fence. Farmer leaders plan to gherao Parliament on December 16. Kelkar, along with Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Badal, had visited various villages on the border and listened to the grievances. Deputy Commissioner KS Pannu, who along with ADC (Development) Puneet Bharadwaj had accompanied Kelkar to the affected villages on Friday night, however, said it was an unscheduled visit. The farmers apprised Kelkar of the difficulties in cultivating land falling across the barbed fence, which was erected in 1993. They said they have limited hours to work and insufficient water supply, and inaccessibility has left thousands of acres in Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran and Ferozepur barren. Border Sangharsh Committee senior president Rattan Singh Randhawa said farmers have been suffering for the past about two decades now. “In 1997, the then Home Minister LK Advani promised Rs 4,000 annual compensation for each acre and widening of 83 bridges in the border areas, apart from general development. But all promises remained only on papers. Compensation of Rs 3,000 per acre was paid only once,” he said, adding that visits by officials bring no cheer to aggrieved farmers. Randhawa said they were left with no option but to intensify their struggle against the discrimination being meted out to the farmers who were rich landlords before Partition and had even lived a comfortable life till 1993, when the barbed fence was erected. “The barbed fence is in a zigzag manner. The officials never realised that thousands of acres have gone on the other side of the border,” said Arsal Singh, a senior leader of the Sangharsh Committee. He said just two villages, Ranian and Kakkar, have over 3,000 acres across the fence. “The trouble aggravated when mines, which have led to causalities and injuries, were installed,” he added. Admitting that farmers’ complaints were justified, Pannu said, “I know the troubles they are facing. I have written to the higher authorities and even apprised Kelkar of the problems. He has assured compensation.”
