BKU hails directions of High Court

Our Correspondent

Ludhiana, April 9

The Bharti Kisan Union-Kadian (BKU) has welcomed the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court according to which forcible recovery of farm loans from small and marginal farmers has been stopped. The court orders further state that land/property of defaulting farmers should not be attached.

Addressing monthly meeting of the body here on Sunday, the BKU president Harmeet Singh Kadian said, “The step, if implemented in letter and spirit, will come as a shot in the arm for financially stressed farmers and cut down the number of suicides.”

The BKU secretary general, Gurmeet Singh Golewal, said as per promise made to farmers during the Lok Sabha elections, the NDA government should implement recommendations of the Dr Swaminathan Committee for determination of the minimum support price (MSP) of the farm produce.

“The MSP of wheat on the basis of cost of production and other imputs works out to Rs 2,850 per quintal whereas farmers are being paid Rs 1,735. The government should announce payment of difference by way of bonus to wheat producers so that they can get reasonable margin of profit on their produce,” he added.

Another BKU member Jagdev Singh Kaniawali raised the issue of adulterated/synthetic milk being sold in urban and rural markets by unscrupulous persons. He urged the government to curb this menace firmly as spurious milk not only posed a serious health hazard to consumers, but also adversely affected dairy farmers, who could not get due price for milk and related products.

Kadian, who presided over the meeting, pointed out that gross injustice was being inflicted on farmers, who suffered crop losses due to sparking in electric cables. These losses should not be treated as a natural calamity, he said while adding that Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) should be held responsible for this lapse.

“The government should put a mechanism in place to recover amount of crop loss from the power utility and also register criminal cases against guilty officials,” he said.

The BKU president further asked the government to make foolproof arrangements for timely lifting and payment of the upcoming wheat crop.

He also demanded that all temporary and permanent encroachments from grain markets should be immediately removed to make adequate space available for the wheat crop, which would start arriving in mandis in the next couple of days.