The Punjab Congress on Saturday asked the State Government to pay bonus to the farmers on wheat at the rate of Rs200 per quintal besides adequate compensation on other crops damaged due to continuous inclement weather.
State Congress president Partap Singh Bajwa Bajwa visited Jagraon and Mullanpur mandis to have first had account of the problems being faced by the farmers in procurement. He was accompanied by Ravneet Singh Bittu, MP, Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Rakesh Pandey, Surinder Daavar (MlAs) and several other party leaders.
“The farmers have suffered a heavy damage due to bad weather. The situation has been compounded by the lack of adequate support from the Governments, both at the Centre and the State. The farmers must be given relaxation in wheat specification for procurement. The potato farmers should be suitably compensated”, he said.
Bajwa said the farmers had to wait for days to sell their produce and this had been their fate for the last several years in every procurement season. He slammed BJP and the Akali Dal for the current mess. He pointed out that five States had relaxed specification at their own but the Parkash Singh Badal Government was still to act. Bajwa said the agrarian crisis was deepening in the country and what was needed was the second green revolution. He also called for taking immediate steps to encourage diversification by assuring market support.