Former chief minister and BJP leader Capt Amarinder Singh Tuesday termed Rs 15,000 per acre compensation being offered by Punjab government to farmers who suffered crop loss due to untimely rain and hailstorm as too less and demanded that they be granted double that amount even as Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal sought immediate release of Rs 50,000 per acre.

“The complete destruction of the wheat crop in nearly half of the state is there for all to see. It has also been corroborated by agricultural experts. What was he (Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann) waiting for?” Badal asked.

Untimely rains, hailstorm and high-velocity winds have caused damage to wheat and other crops in many areas of Punjab.

Badal said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government had promised to give compensation immediately after crop damage on the ‘Delhi Model’ and should keep its promise instead of “delaying” the assessment procedure to deny relief to farmers as it had done last year also. “Farmers have not received compensation for damage done to wheat and cotton crops last year which should also be given immediately,” he added.

He said the SAD will launch an agitation in case “injustice” was done to farmers.

He also demanded that compensation for farm labourers be increased to Rs 10,000 per acre and losses suffered by leaseholders be taken into account.

Badal demanded that the AAP government take up the issue of value cuts which farmers feared would be put on their wheat harvest with the central government immediately.

“The central government should be asked not to put any value cuts on excess moisture and discoloration of grains due to the special circumstances,” said Badal.

Meanwhile, in a statement, Amarinder said, “While the government has been claiming to have ordered a special girdawari, the ground reports suggest that no official has reached out to farmers as yet to assess their losses. This means that it will take more time and till then the farmers should be provided some interim relief to enable them to sow the next crop and manage day to day affairs”.

He said that the Rs 15,000 compensation announced by the government was too less as the losses to farmers were quite enormous and demanded that they be paid at least Rs 30,000 per acre.

On Sunday, Leader of the Opposition and Congress MLA Partap Singh Bajwa, while slamming the “meagre compensation to the farmers, had stated that “the government should also take those wheat farmers into account who have to pay around Rs 35,000 per acre annual land rent (theka) to the owners. In some parts of Punjab, the annual land rent (theka) is above Rs 40,000.”

Source - https://indianexpress.com