Former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has demanded that the support price of sugarcane be fixed at a minimum of Rs 500 per quintal, that paddy procurement begin immediately, and that the market fee be reduced to 1 per cent.
He announced that he would donate one month’s salary to the flood relief fund and appealed to all MLAs, including Congress legislators, to also contribute a month’s salary to provide meaningful assistance to flood-affected families. Hooda was addressing reporters at his residence.
He said floods have devastated nearly 30 lakh acres of farmland across Haryana, leaving around 5.1 lakh farmers to suffer losses. Despite more than a month having passed, the state continues to grapple with the aftermath, yet the BJP government has failed to take concrete steps to provide relief. Hooda, who personally visited flood-affected areas from Jind and Rohtak to Yamunanagar, said people everywhere complained of inadequate assistance and poor relief measures.
Hooda expressed surprise that the Haryana government has neither declared the state flood-affected nor sought a relief package from the Centre. He alleged this reveals the government’s intent to trap people in prolonged processes of portals and land surveys, thereby withholding timely compensation.
According to Hooda, farmers have suffered losses of nearly Rs 1 lakh per acre, with standing crops destroyed and no prospects for the next harvest, forcing farmers into two consecutive seasons of loss. He demanded compensation of at least Rs 60,000 to Rs 70,000 per acre, saying the government’s current offer was even less than the cost of fertiliser.
He pointed out that the floods have also hit the paddy crop hard. Whatever little farmers managed to save has begun reaching mandis, but procurement has not yet started. Hooda demanded that procurement begin on September 20 and that the entire crop be purchased at MSP. He further urged the government to reduce the market fee from 4 percent to 1 percent, noting that higher charges are driving mills out of Haryana. Many of these mills, established during the Congress regime when fees were kept lower, are now shifting to other states due to the burden of high charges.
Hooda said the floods had exposed not only the poor arrangements of the BJP government but also its corruption. In cities, scams were carried out in the name of the Amrit scheme and sewerage cleaning, leaving entire towns submerged after the first rainfall. In villages, canals and drains were neither cleaned nor embankments strengthened. He further alleged that scams were committed in pipeline projects across villages, which proved useless as no water was drained when the floods came.
He also questioned the conduct of the Election Commission, saying it has not provided clear answers on fake votes—how such a large number were created, who was responsible, and what action has been taken. Hooda alleged that bogus votes are widespread in Haryana, with the BJP misusing ration cards to manipulate elections. Just before polls, the number of BPL cards was inflated to 52 lakh, suggesting that nearly 80 percent of the state’s population was below the poverty line. Yet, soon after elections, cancellations began, with 11 lakh ration cards already revoked. He asked whether such cards were issued to steal votes or to enable a ration scam, and said either way, it was a grave instance of corruption and theft of mandate that warrants strict action against the guilty.
On the state of higher education, Hooda said that not a single university in Haryana has figured among the top 100 institutions of the country. Since the BJP came to power, the quality of higher education in the state has steadily deteriorated. He pointed out that in the NIRF 2025 rankings released on September 4, no Haryana university found a place among the top 100.
Commenting on the INLD, Hooda said both the INLD and JJP are merely proxies of the BJP. As the BJP cannot face the Congress directly in Haryana, it resorts to fighting through such alliances. He recalled that last time, the BJP fought a proxy battle with JJP support, while this time it has tied up with the INLD. In Sirsa, the BJP even withdrew its candidate to ensure the victory of INLD ally Gopal Kanda, whose statement itself exposed the BJP-INLD alliance.
He added that in constituencies such as Rania, Narwana, Ellenabad, and Dabwali, the INLD extended support to the BJP while the BJP openly backed INLD candidates. Hooda said the people of Haryana fully understand their true nature and that there is no need to waste time responding to their claims.
Also Read: SC restores proprietors’ rights on Haryana village common lands
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