Form national panel on farm debt waiver: Capt Amarinder to PM

Asking for the Swaminathan Committee report to be accepted in totality, Amarinder said the governing council should consider the issue of agricultural loan waiver on priority.

Chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to constitute a committee, including chief ministers, to prepare a blueprint of a national debt waiver scheme for farmers.

Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Niti Aayog meet on Sunday. (HT Photo)

Asking for the Swaminathan Committee report to be accepted in totality, the CM, who was addressing a meeting of the NITI Aayog in New Delhi, said the governing council should consider the issue of agricultural loan waiver on priority.

The CM also reiterated his government’s request for central assistance to celebrate the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak and the centenary of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar next year.

Pointing out that the nation was also observing the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Amarinder said 2019 was a historic year for the entire nation, and called for collective efforts to ensure that the various commemorative events are celebrated in the spirit they deserve.

Amarinder cited initiatives being taken by the Punjab government to tackle the crisis of unemployment. He said the state government was setting up district enterprise and employment bureaus that connect the skilled youth with jobs under the “Ghar Ghar Rozgaar and Karobaar” mission.

Other demands

• Special infrastructure development package for border areas for Punjab, which has an active international border having thick population

• Acquisition of lands beyond the border fence by the Union government, along with incentives for the industry in the border area

• Tax incentives to border areas of Punjab as given to the hilly and north-eastern states

• Special development and maintenance of border roads under the national highways programme

• Inclusion of Punjab rivers capital assistance on the lines of the Ganga Action Plan

• Approval for the state’s projects for upgrade of irrigation system and expeditious approval to Shahpur Kandi Dam project on Ravi

• Procurement of maize, oilseeds and pulses by central agencies

•Incentive to farmers for not burning stubble