Farmers’ body demand more relief for damaged wheat crop

Kirti Kisan Union (KKU) Punjab general secretary Satbir Singh said here on Tuesday, “The announced compensation of `8,000 per acre for damaged wheat crop in Punjab is a cruel joke on the plight of farmers by the ruling Akali Dal that falsely claims to be farmer-friendly.”

Kirti Kisan Union (KKU) Punjab general secretary Satbir Singh said here on Tuesday, “The announced compensation of `8,000 per acre for damaged wheat crop in Punjab is a cruel joke on the plight of farmers by the ruling Akali Dal that falsely claims to be farmer-friendly.”

He said the central government had already announced a compensation of `5,400 per acre for the damaged wheat crop across the country by untimely rains, hails and cold, while the Punjab government added just `2,600 per acre to it.

The KKU leader said Punjab contributed around 60% of the total wheat production in the country, while the state government’s share in the compensation to the farmers was negligible.

He sais on the contrary, the wheat growers of Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat were getting more compensation for the damaged wheat crop.

He said the Arun Kejriwal government in Delhi had announced a compensation of `20,000 per acre to the farmers of the state in addition to the central government’s `5,400.

He said our neighbouring state Haryana was giving `10,000 per acre from its coffer to the farmers as relief in addition to `5,400 by the Centre.

Satbir Singh said the state government would give `8,000 as compensation only if the damage to the crop was 75% to 100%, though the Centre had announced the compensation to the farmers whose at least 33% crop was damaged.

He said if the loss to the crop was 25-33%, the state government would offer only `2,000 as compensation per acre.

The KKU leader said the production cost of wheat crop was maximum in Punjab, while the Punjab farmers were getting lowest compensation for the damaged crop.

He demanded that the compensation for the damaged wheat crop in Punjab should be at least `30,000 per acre.