Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday vehemently presented the case of state’s food growers by underlining the need to make Minimum Support Price (MSP) a legal guarantee and ensuring foolproof marketing system for alternative crops.
The Chief Minister, while addressing the national council meeting of Niti Aayog chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the national capital, pointed out that agriculture is no longer a profitable venture and the state’s hardworking farmers are facing a serious crisis. All out efforts must be made to bail out farmers from this situation for which the Union government must step in, he said.
Underscoring the need for making MSP on crops a legal guarantee, Mann said that it is the need of hour so that interests of farmers can be safeguarded. Likewise, Mann said that the MSP must be remunerative as input cost of agriculture has enhanced manifolds and farmers are not getting right price of their harvest.
Outrightly rejecting the Centre’s panel on MSP, he demanded that it should be reconstituted with ‘real farmers’ as its members. “The committee is dominated by those arm-chair economists who don’t have any knowledge about agriculture. Experts of agriculture, along with all stakeholders, must be made members of this committee,” he added.
Expressing concern over the import of pulses in the country at exorbitant prices, Mann said that this drain of the country's wealth needs to be checked and Punjab can play an important role in it. “The state’s farmers are ready to make the country self-relevant in production of pulses. However, the Centre must announce MSP for pulses and an assured marketing system for it,” he added.
Likewise, the Chief Minister said that diversification of crops is urgently needed to take farmers out of the rut of wheat-paddy cycle on one hand and to save the depleting ground water level on the other.
Bemoaning that out of total 150 blocks, water level in 117 blocks is in the dark zone, Mann solicited Centre’s support to check water level by introducing MSP on alternative crops too.
Flagging another issue, he also demanded special allocation of funds for rejuvenation of canal system in the State. He also sought immediate release of funds for higher education sector in the state.
Mann also urged the Centre to support the State Government as it will give major fillip to industrialisation and create new job opportunities in the state.
Training his guns against the state’s former Chief Ministers, Mann said that none of his predecessors bothered to attend this meeting in the last three years resulting in state’s colossal loss. “None of them came to attend the meeting and just wrote letters which were of no use. These leaders remained confined in their own palaces and ignored the state’s interests. However, today, I have duly used this platform for raising the issues being faced by the State and I am hopeful that the Centre will pay heed towards resolving them,” he added.
“It was the first Niti Aayog meeting for me after becoming the Chief Minister. It is unfortunate that no one has come from Punjab in the last three years. I went with detailed homework today and kept Punjab's issues. The biggest issue was the variety of crops,” he said while speaking to media persons, after attending the meeting.
Mann also said that he was satisfied with the NITI Aayog meetings and felt that all the issues were heard.
MANN SUGGESTS HOLDING G20 MEETING IN AMRITSAR
“India will be chairing G20 from December 1. I have put forth Amritsar's name before External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar as the location where all meetings can be held. We will showcase our culture in the summit,” he said.
India is all set to hold the G20 presidency from December 1, 2022, and will also convene the G20 leaders' Summit next year for the very first time. India will hold a number of G20 events at a variety of locations across the country, during its G20 presidency, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).