Terming the Congress’ kisan rally in New Delhi a political gimmick, chief minister Parkash Singh Badal said the party was “shedding crocodile tears” on the farmers’ issue.
Interacting with reporters on the sidelines of convocation at Shaheed Bhagat Singh State Technical Campus, the CM said: “Country’s farmers are facing a number of problems due to regressive policies of the Congress.”
Questioning the logic behind organising the rally in New Delhi, he said the Congress was the root cause of the agonies of the farmers so it had no moral right to hold such a rally.
“This rally is a political gimmick. The sole aim of which is to score brownie points before the media rather than solving the farmers’ problems” added Badal.
Terming the Punjab model of land acquisition, which had been successfully implemented in the state for the past many years, “time tested”, Badal said farmers in the state had been fully compensated whenever any land had been acquired for development.
“Ever since assuming power in 2007, we have been pursuing a pro-farmer policy of land acquisition, which is a role model for the entire country,” he said.
Batting for opening of trade through Hussainiwala and Fazilka borders, Badal said though it was an international matter, the state government would make efforts for opening these trade routes as it would usher in an era of unprecedented development and prosperity in Punjab.
{{/usCountry}}Batting for opening of trade through Hussainiwala and Fazilka borders, Badal said though it was an international matter, the state government would make efforts for opening these trade routes as it would usher in an era of unprecedented development and prosperity in Punjab.
{{/usCountry}}He said since Punjab was a landlocked state, opening of trade through these borders could boost the economic activity in the region. “The items currently traded through the Attari border should also be brought on a par with those traded through the Mumbai-Karachi sea route," said Badal.
Blaming the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, Badal said it deliberately denied the permission to the Punjab government for auctioning mines in the state, which led to the hike in sand prices.
He said sand prices would be reduced soon as the Union government had now granted permission to the state for mining.