Kalia seeks CM’s resignation over adulteration in paddy seeds
Former minister and member of the national executive of the BJP Manoranjan Kalia slammed Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for the alleged criminal negligence for the adulteration of hybrid paddy seeds of PR-126, causing a huge loss to farmers.
Kalia demanded that Mann must own it up and resign as Chief Minister. “PR-126 was the line of the International Rice Research Institute and, after rigorous testing at the PAU, it was released by the state in 2017 with an embargo that this variety must be transplanted after June 25 whereas the other varieties are allowed to be transplanted after June 15. Owing to advantages of this variety of saving water and becoming harvest-ready after 90 days of transplanting, the CM gave a call to farmers for transplanting the variety without taking into consideration whether Punjab had sufficient stock”, Kalia alleged.
He said, “The farmers having relied upon the CM and transplanted the variety before June 25. Thereafter, there was shortage of paddy seed PR-126 and the gap was filled with other hybrid varieties. The AAP government has failed to check the adulteration of the hybrid varieties that were brought to the market to match the demand.”
The BJP leader further said, “The government could not assess that they did not have sufficient seeds of PR-126 to be transplanted on 160 lakh hectares.”
Kalia demanded that government should show record as to how much seeds of PR-126 were available before the start of season and in how much area it was grown.
He said the non-adherence of the embargo by the AAP government had complicated the problem, culminating into a loss of 4-5 kg milled rice per quintal of paddy. The standard requirement of the Food Corporation of India is to get 67 kg of milled rice from one quintal of paddy whereas output from PR-126 is 60-62 kg of rice from one quintal of paddy.
Kalia has said Mann must own up his negligence of making paddy procurement a disaster and causing a deadly jolt not only to the farmers and traders but to Punjab’s economy in general, reiterating that he should resign over the issue.
