Sukhbir Badal asks CM Amarinder to explain why his govt had failed to incentivise a single farmer to prevent stubble burning.

Chandigarh, October 18 – Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today asked Congress chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh to explain why his government had failed to incentivise a single farmer to prevent stubble burning and why he was indulging in politics of lies and deceit by getting photo ops clicked with the Prime Minister to befool the farmers of the State.

Reacting to the “tamasha” enacted by Capt Amarinder Singh in Delhi to hide his government’s abysmal failure to give any compensation to the farmer to cover the cost of managing paddy straw, the SAD President said the chief minister should first give a report card of the utilisation of Rs 385 crore received from the centre to manage paddy straw. “Isn’t it strange that Capt Amarinder is asking the centre for more money to to compensate farmers before telling why the State has been unable to disburse a single paisa to the anndaata for this purpose?”.

Asking the CM to walk the talk first before demanding more money from the centre, Mr Badal said the Punjab government should immediately release Rs 3,000 per acre to all paddy growers to cover the cost of managing paddy straw. “Once you do this we will ourselves accompany you and ask the centre to give more funds to better the lot of farmers. However if you do not do this you will have to answer why you misused central funds and did not give any direct benefit to the Punjab farmer”.

Asking the chief minister to tell where the Rs 385 crore had gone because there was no material difference in management of paddy at the ground level, he said a huge scam was in the making and would be uncovered by the SAD in the coming days. He also announced that the SAD would stand with farmers and would not allow the Congress government to prosecute them in any manner. He asked the party rank and file to rush to the aid of farmers wherever they were being persecuted and prevent registration of cases against them.

Stating that farmers could not be asked to bear the cost of managing paddy straw which came to more than Rs 3,000 per acre under any circumstances; Mr Badal said they were already suffering from the State’s dictatorial decision to delay paddy transplantation by ten days to June 20. He said this had left farmers with a very small cropping window to manage paddy straw. “This is why the government must now act quickly and disburse money to farmers to enable them to prevent stubble burning”, he added.