Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Saturday hit out at ruling Congress government in Punjab for delaying the wheat procurement season by ten days to April 10, instead of April 1.
Senior SAD leaders Prem Singh Chandumajra and Daljit Singh Cheema said the very fact that the Punjab government had delayed the procurement season was proof that it was playing into the hands of the central government. “Delay in the procurement season will cause hardship to farmers who will have to stock their harvested crop in the fields for ten days besides leading to the extension of the procurement season and late sowing of the forthcoming paddy crop.”
Amid the surge in COVID-19 cases in, the Punjab government had announced to start wheat procurement operations from April 10 this year. The decision to delay the purchase of wheat was taken at a recently held Covid review meeting, presided by chief minister Amarinder Singh.
Mr. Chandumajra and Mr. Cheema said as per the decision of the party core committee, the SAD would take up this issue with Punjab Governor V.P. Singh Badnore on March 30 and demand that procurement of wheat be started from April 1.
“We will also bring to the Governor’s attention that the Congress government has compromised the interests of the State by presiding over a huge paddy procurement scam under which paddy purchased at ₹800 per quintal from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh was brought to Punjab and purchased at ₹1,900 per quintal. This is the reason why against a likely purchase of 164 lakh tonne, the actual paddy purchased in the last season was 218 lakh tonnes,” said the leaders at a press conference here.
The leaders alleged that the Congress government was in slumber over the issue of new specifications for procurement of food grains by the Food Corporation of India (FCI).
“The chief minister is ‘thinking’ to write a letter to the Prime Minister over the unrealistic tightening of specifications for purchase of wheat vis a vis the moisture content and shriveled grain count. It is clear that the central government is trying to renege on payment for food grains on Minimum Support Price and the State government is becoming a tool in fulfilling this nefarious agenda,” they alleged.
