Visits the farmers, demands they be awarded interim compensation at the rate of Rs 25,000 per acre
Ashok Verma, Bathinda, March 4 :2024
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today condemned the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government for leaving farmers whose wheat crops have been flattened by hailstorm in this district two days back to their fate and demanded they be compensated immediately at the rate of Rs 25,000 per acre.
The SAD president, who visited a number of villages including Chak Attar Singh Wala, Nandgarh, Bajak, Sardargarh, Karamgarh Shatra, Virk Khurd, Burj Mehma, Mehma Bhagwana, Mehma Sarkari and Mehma Savai villages in this district, said villagers told him that no AAP legislator or even the Agriculture minister, who was from the area, had visited them till now. He demanded that chief minister Bhagwant Mann order a girdawari to assess the damage, and pending the same, give an interim relief of Rs 25,000 per acre to the affected farmers.
Mr Sukhbir Badal said it was shocking that the chief minister, who had promised to give compensation in advance in case of crop damage, had failed to release compensation to farmers for the massive losses suffered by them during floods last year. He said the chief minister had also betrayed farmers by promising them MSP for all crops but failed to procure either their pulses or maize crops on MSP.
Asserting that the SAD would not let the AAP government get away with this anti-farmer policy, Mr Sukhbir Badal said “in case compensation in not awarded to the farmers who have lost their standing wheat crop due to hailstorm we will launch an agitation to ensure justice with them”. He also demanded that farmers whose potato and vegetable crops had been destroyed by the hailstorm also be awarded adequate compensation.
The SAD president also spoke to the party MLA Manpreet Singh Ayali over phone and asked him to raise the compensation issue in the House. Following that, Dakha MLA Ayali raised it vociferously and asked the CM to provide adequate compensation to the affected farmers without any delay. Mr Badal was accompanied by ex MLA Parkash Singh Bhatti, district president Balkar Singh Brar and Bhucho constituency incharge Mann Singh.
