CHANDIGARH: Haryana Government today assured that all cotton growers in the State who have recently suffered losses due to crop damage caused by whitefly and parawilt, will be given compensation.
While stating this here today, Additional Chief Secretary, Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department, Mr. Sanjeev Kaushal, said that all such cotton growers would be compensated irrespective of whether or not they have enrolled under the crop insurance scheme ‘Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana’.
He said that as per the directions of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister, Mr. J. P. Dalal, the Revenue Department had been requested to conduct special girdawari in a timely manner in the fields of those cotton growers who have not registered under the crop insurance scheme.
For those who have enrolled under the scheme, compensation would be given on the basis of loss assessment during crop cutting experiments. Farmers need not apply individually as loss assessment would be undertaken at village level, he added.
Kaushal said that following reports of whitefly attacks in districts Sirsa, Hisar, Fatehabad, Jind and Bhiwani, the Department had cautioned cotton growers against using a mixture of two or more insecticides on their crops. The advisory instead recommends application of neem-based remedies and monitoring of the crop, particularly after downpours and irrigation, to tackle the menace of whitefly and parawilt. A communication campaign has also been launched in the affected districts to raise awareness about the judicious use of insecticides, he added.