Non-payment of arrears: Kapurthala DC forms price fixation panel

Ashok Kaura

Phagwara, September 17

Taking serious action to solve the tangle arising out of non-payment of arrears worth Rs 40.75 crore of farmers by Phagwara Sugar Mills, the administration has now taken the decision to sell the attached property of the sugar mill to pay the arrears of the farmers.

Kapurthala Deputy Commissioner Captain Karnail Singh today formed a seven-member ‘price fixation committee’. Phagwara SDM Jai Inder Singh has been appointed its convenor. The DC himself will be the chairman of the committee, while Hoshiarpur MP and Union Minister Som Parkash, Phagwara MLA Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal, Municipal Commissioner Amit Kumar Panchal, Block Samiti Chairman and District Revenue Officer will be the official members of the committee. Two representatives of the farmers will also be invited to the meetings of the committee.

Confirming this, SDM Jai Inder Singh said the committee would recommend market rates of the attached property after completing a detailed survey within 15 days.

Meanwhile, the DC has instructed Phagwara Tehsildar Baljinder Singh to ensure inclusion of two representatives of farmers and submit market rates of the said attached properties.

Notably, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Doaba) general secretary Satnam Singh Sahni has warned the administration that the farmers would not allow mill owners to start crushing of sugarcane till the arrears were released. The DC has also written to the Financial Commissioner (Development) to constitute a committee to run the sugar mill or make alternative arrangements to crush the sugarcane of farmers in another sugar mill nearby.

Phagwara SDM appointed convenor

Phagwara SDM Jai Inder Singh has been appointed its convenor. The DC himself will be the chairman of the committee, while Hoshiarpur MP and Union Minister Som Parkash, Phagwara MLA Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal, Municipal Commissioner Amit Kumar Panchal, Block Samiti Chairman and District Revenue Officer will be the official members of the committee.

#Kapurthala #Phagwara