Terming the decision of J&K government to annul the March 2015 announcement of then Finance Minister of waiving off water tax on agricultural land as “arbitrary” and against the interests of farmers, CPI (M) leader Muhammad YousufTarigami Wednesday demanded the immediate revocation of the order issued by Chief Engineer Irrigation and Flood Control.
A statement of CPI (M) issued here quoted Tarigami as saying that in the order issued on 11 August 2020, the chief engineer had directed the Numberdars to collect water taxes from the farmers from March 2015 onwards failing which they had been warned of action under Jammu and Kashmir Water Resources Regulation and Management Act-2010. He said that the decision to waive off water tax from the farmers was taken by then State government and announced in the Assembly.
“How can a chief engineer issue an order to overturn the decision of an elected government now,” Tarigami said in the statement. He said some of the agricultural land on which the chief engineer had passed directions to collect water tax had been changed for other purposes since then. “It is sheer injustice with the farmers to force them to pay now when they had been given some relief by then government,” Tarigami said in the statement and demanded immediate revocation of the order issued by the chief engineer.