Speaking on the serious issue of farm suicides, the Union Minister for Food Processing Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Sunday said that Punjab Government was committed to protect the interests of farmers and is ready to extend all kind of help to the debt ridden farmers.
She warned people against those who cut political gains out of such serious issues.
After sorting out the issues of village Harranpura and Dhelwan during Sangat Darshan conducted at village Gobindpura, Harsimrat while interacting with the mediapersons stated that Punjab Government was completely committed to resolve all kinds of issues of the farmers and different farmer welfare schemes have been launched with the same purpose.
She said that from Monday onwards,Punjab Government was launching Bhagat Puran Singh Health Insurance Scheme, which is part of the series of pro-farmer initiatives Government has launched.
She said that more than 11 lakh farmers having J forms, can take benefit of this scheme under whose first phase 3 lakhs farmers are being given the benefit. She added that the scheme includes health insurance up to `50000 for the head of family and his family members for an year.
Answering another query, she said that the State Government has been paying power bills of the farmers for the last 9 years amounting to `6000 crore and in coming days around 1.56 lakh new tubewell connections will be alloted to the farmers whose power bills Government will pay.
She said that Punjab government has left no stone unturned in implementing pro-farmer schemes at the grass root level.
Responding to a media query on SGPC forming a committee to probe into incidents of attack on Sikhs on foreign shores, the Union Minister appreciated the decision and said that it was need of the hour so that such racist attacks can be stopped in future.
She added that post 9/11 America attack, Sikhs in foreign countries were facing many kind of problems for which the Punjab Government has timely appealed Centre to run campaigns and create awareness regarding Sikhs.
Terming the hurling of shoe on Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal as unfortunate, Union Minister said that this way of protesting was not correct. She said that politicians should understand the feelings of people and should consider their demands seriously.
Answering a question on solid waste management plant constructed on Bathinda-Mansa Road she said that the project was set up after getting approval from the National Green Tribunal (NGT).
Earlier the Union Minister, while addressing a large gathering said that people of Punjab should decide between good and bad for the 2017 polls as the SAD-BJP alliance has heralded in overall development for poor, needy, farmers, industry etc and has always stood by them.
She added that after sometime of its formation in Centre, the BJP Government gave Punjab `30000 cr road network, which will propel the development in State.
She said that in next one year, travelling from one corner of State to another, would become easy. Talking about the misleading campaign that Congress and AAP are running, she said that people will give a befitting reply to this wrong campaign in forthcoming 2017 elections.