Union Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Friday asked Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh to personally intervene and direct Punjab Agro Industries Corporation (PAIC) to operationalize Ladhowal mega food park by the end of next month failing which the Food Processing Ministry would be “constrained to terminate the project”.
Harsimrat, in a letter to the Chief Minister, said that the Ladhowal food park was taken up for implementation by PAIC after a grant of Rs 50 crore from the Food Processing Ministry, and the Park was approved in November 2015 and slated to be completed in May 2018.
“Despite the fact that she had been consistently reviewing the progress of the work, there is a complete lack of initiative from PAIC to stick to mandated schedules which is harming progressive farmers as well as youth who are slated to get employment at the facility,” she said.
The Union Minister reminded the Chief Minister that she had taken up the issue of timely inauguration and operationalisation of the Park with him on numerous occasions but no progress was being made to complete remaining works.
“The completion of the Park is being delayed for one reason for another,” she said while urging the Chief Minister to once again expedite completion of the Park on top priority.
She said that if this was not done, “the Ministry would be constrained to terminate the project which would deprive the State of significant job opportunities because of its own apathy”.