Even as the Congress Government in Punjab is chalking out the modalities to implement its pro-farmer decisions including loan waiver and abolition of kurki, the Aam Aadmi Party on Wednesday took the lead by providing financial assistance to the families of farmers who have committed suicide.
Joining hands with the Punjabi diaspora in the foreign lands, AAP has announced to provide monthly financial assistance to 50 victim families, besides providing one-time financial assistance of Rs 50,000 each to 20 families whose male members had committed suicides in the Malwa region of the state.
“AAP has launched ‘Peedat Kisan Khet Mazdoor Muhim’ to help the farmers and farm labourers…Both the Centre and the State Governments are responsible for their plight,” said AAP MlA and the leader of Opposition in Vidhan Sabha Sukhpal Khaira.
Khiara said that AAP has adopted 50 other farmers’ families whose male members have committed suicide; and the party, with the help of the NRIs, would provide them “monthly assistance of Rs 2,500 for a period of at least five years from today onwards”.
He said that 50 families have been “adopted” by two California-based doctors — Dr Harjeet Singh Gill and Sangram Singh Gill — hailing from Jhingar Kalan village near Dasuya, through AAP.
Khaira made it clear that the one-time financial help of Rs 50,000 each for 20 suicide victim families of the Malwa region has been extended by NRIs based in the US, Canada, the UK and other countries as AAP “is not in a position to get the farm loans waived or to compensate any loss of life”.
“We have taken an initiative to motivate the NRIs and other people to come forward and help the farmers at a time when the Centre and the State Government failed to provide them any relief,” said Khaira.
AAP leader pointed that there are more than 50 lakh Punjabi NRIs, and if each of them comes out with a help of just one dollar, they would be contributing approximately Rs 35 crore to help the state’s beleaguered farming community.
“I urge all NRIs and the people belonging to all sections of the society to come forward and help these farmers,” said Khaira alleging that more than 200 Punjab farmers have committed suicides during the five-month-old Congress rule in Punjab.
lashing out at the BJP led Central Government, Khaira said that if the Centre can extend special tax concessions to the hill states, why can’t it help the farmers.