Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Thursday said solving the long and short term issues of the farmers was on top of his Government’s priorities and in no case would the farming community be allowed to feel neglected and alienated in their hour of crisis.
The CM appealed to all political parties including the Congress to rise above petty politicking on this sensitive issue. He was talking to media persons after receiving Congress leaders who had come to meet him on the issue.
Earlier Badal cut short his trip to Delhi to meet opposition legislators at his residence. He had also deputed his Advisor on National Affairs and Media Harcharan Bains to extend warm welcome and hospitality to Congress leaders before his arrival. Bains engaged with the guests for about half an hour.
The Chief Minister categorically said that he fully acknowledge that the climatic aberrations in terms of unseasonal rains and hailstorms resulted in extensive damage to the Wheat crop but at the same time it was not appropriate to blame the state government for its failure on the procurement front.
Badal said that he was in constant touch with all the concerned Union Ministers and above all the PM to resolve this issue at the earliest. Reiterating his firm commitment to lift every grain of the farmer’s yield, Badal said that the entire procurement process would be completed at the earliest and the timely payment of their produce would be ensured to the farmers.
Badal informed that 110 lac MT of Wheat was likely to be procured during this year as compared to last year procurement of 119.31 lac MT. As on April 29, 70.31 lac MT of Wheat has arrived in Mandi, of which 65.13 lac MT has been procured.
Pb pays Rs1,400 cr
Punjab Government released Rs1,400 crore on Thursday for the farmers for their procured wheat during the current Rabi Marketing Season 2015-16.
Food Minister Punjab, Adaish Pratap Singh Kairon said that after having a word with the National Payment Corporation of India, a section of RBI, they have assured him to do all the transactions on Friday May 1, despite being a holiday in Mumbai on the occasion of May Day. Kairon also said that all the payments were being electronically disbursed to the accounts of arthiyas and farmers.