Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal on Monday asked the Union government to constitute a high-level committee of agriculture experts to revive the agrarian economy in the state.
Speaking on the sidelines of a sangat darshan at Bhai Ka Kera village in Muktsar, Badal said that farmer suicides in the state were one of the serious issues and the state government was in constant touch with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to resolve the crisis in the agriculture sector.
Badal said that the state government had hardly any role in fixing the cost of agriculture inputs such as diesel, pesticides, fertilisers and even the minimum support price (MSP), which primarily fell within the domain of the Centre. “The faulty policies of successive governments at the Centre have not only widened the gap between the income and the cost of agriculture inputs, but also have made agriculture a non-profitable. This situation is leading hapless farmers to commit suicide,” Badal said.
Badal added the state government had initiated certain steps to put the derailed agrarian economy on the track by way of giving subsidy on power, besides enhancing the natural calamity fund from Rs 3,400 to Rs 8,000 per acre.
‘AAP’S Punjab dialogue a flop’
Describing the ‘Punjab Dialogue’, started by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), as a flop show, the CM said AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal was least concerned about the rights of Punjab, which was evident from his stand over the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal row. “The people of Punjab have, thus, ignored Punjab Dialogue,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}Describing the ‘Punjab Dialogue’, started by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), as a flop show, the CM said AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal was least concerned about the rights of Punjab, which was evident from his stand over the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal row. “The people of Punjab have, thus, ignored Punjab Dialogue,” he said.
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