Waterlogging-hit villages fast turning self-reliant

Fiscal push

• The Chief Minister adopted Rattakhera Vadda and Rattakhera Chhota villages last year to ensure their development
• The state government is spending nearly Rs 20 crore to develop these villages
• Farmers are turning to dairying and women tailoring

Archit Watts
Tribune News Service

Lambi, August 16

The residents of Rattakhera Vadda and Rattakhera Chhota villages – worst affected by waterlogging – are fast becoming self-reliant. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal adopted the villages in October, last year, to ensure their development. The state government is spending nearly Rs 20 crore to develop these villages with a population of nearly 2,500.

Loans were sanctioned to farmers so they could set up dairy units under the new schemes launched by the state government. So far, no one has been declared defaulter. Barring a few landlords, no one in the village could grow crops on their land for the last two decades. Now, with the efforts of the Agriculture Department, a large chunk of waterlogging-hit land has been reclaimed.

Similarly, 110 small dairy units set up are becoming a good source of income for the residents. “The milk that the villages supplied to Milkfed daily has increased from 45 litres to 400 litres. The farmers are also selling milk to private companies,” said Ramvir Singh, Additional Deputy Commissioner (Development), Muktsar.

He said, “The progress report of these villages has shown that not even a single person has defaulted on his loan. Everyone is repaying their monthly instalments to the banks in time.”

Another senior officer in the district administration said some women, who were recently trained as tailors, have started their business in neighbouring Malout town.

He said only 20 per cent of the land hit by waterlogging could not be reclaimed, but the government was continuing with its efforts. To reclaim land, its hard crust is broken using sub-soilers and then irrigated with canal water.

As per a recently conducted socio-economic survey, 18 per cent boys and 15 per cent girls of marriageable age here were reportedly unmarried.

Courtesy: The Tribune