Ratta Tibba (Muktsar) March 17
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said here today that the government has decided to slash the price of Bt cotton seed from Rs 1,390 to Rs 760 per packet which would now be made available through Markfed, Punseed and other authorised
distributors.
Expressing disappointment over the announcement of Rs 100 as bonus on wheat by the centre for one season, he told mediapersons that it should be merged with its minimum support price (MSP) to extend permanent relief to farmers.
Though asserting that the centre had not cheated farmers by announcing Rs 100 as bonus per quintal of wheat, he said it was not proper on the part of the union government to announce bonus. Rather it should have
revised and fixed the MSP of wheat at Rs 900 per quintal as demanded by him during his recent meeting with the Prime Minister at New Delhi. He added that he would continue to fight for increasing the MSP of wheat.Addressing mediapersons here today during the ‘sangat darshan programme’ Badal requested the Prime Minister to advise the ministry of agriculture, public distribution and consumer affairs to review its decision and immediately increase the MSP of wheat to Rs 900 per quintal.
Badal also informed that in a move to help cotton growers in the state, the Punjab government had decided to slash the price of recommended qualities of Bt cotton seed from Rs 1390 to Rs 760 per packet, which would now be available from Markfed, Punseed and authorised distributors of reputed seed firms.
The chief minister said that though his government had decided not to indulge in any sort of political vendetta, files of those mega projects passed by the previous Congress government, which appeared shady, would be examined by a screening committee to be set up shortly.
On the question of constitution of the excesses commission as promised during the assembly elections to fix accountability for the wrongs committed during the previous regime, Badal said he was thinking about it.
Asked to comment on the stand of his party on scraping Section 5 of Punjab Termination of River Waters Act, Badal said the government was seeking legal opinion. He, however, said the government would safeguard the rights of the state unlike the Congress which created the entire problem.
Badal said he had filed a case in the Supreme Court against the award given by Indira Gandhi but that too was withdrawn by the ex-Congress chief minister Darbara Singh.
“The issue of inter-state river waters must be settled according to the universally accepted principles of riparian law and not arbitrarily” observed Badal.
