E-Paper
Cane growers call off protest after minister Dhaliwal assures to fulfil their demands
Agriculture minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal said state government is concerned about issues of cane cultivators. The CM himself would make an announcement on their demands.
Farmer organisations have called off their protest after agriculture minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal assured them of fulfilling their demands, at the Circuit House in Jalandhar on Wednesday.
Addressing a press conference, the minister said chief minister Bhagwant Mann would make an official announcement in this regard in the Vidhan Sabha session on October 3. He said that the state government is concerned about the issues of cane cultivators, including the fixing of crop prices and other issues. The CM himself would make an announcement on their demands.
The minister also said that the government is working to evolve an elaborate mechanism where cane growers would get their payments within 14 days. Likewise, efforts were being made to ensure that all the Sugar mills were functional before November 15 so that farmers do not face any kind of problem with respect to their crops. He also mentioned that the issue of Bhogpur Sugar Mill was also under consideration and it would be made operational by the stipulated timeline, adding that efforts were also being put in place to start the Phagwara Sugar Mill.
Speaking on the stubble burning issue, Dhaliwal said that the Punjab government would assist the farmers with all the required machinery and facilities to minimise the incidents of crop residue burning as it is posing a great threat to the health of the people. He appealed to farmers to join hands with the state government to curtail stubble burning practices in the state. Replying to a query related to an alleged agriculture machinery scam worth ₹150 crore, the minister said that the inquiry has been completed in this matter and actions would soon be initiated against the guilty.
