Centre delaying Rs 1,600 cr promised for flood-hit: CM Mann

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday said he failed to comprehend why the Centre was dilly-dallying on the release of Rs 1,600 crore, which was promised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for flood-ravaged Punjab villages.

The CM was here to inaugurate the enhanced capacity of the state-run Gurdaspur sugar mill at Paniar, 6 km from here.

Minutes after the CM dedicated the project to the public, Dinanagar MLA Aruna Chaudhary said, “It was during the previous Congress regime that then Cooperation Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and I had done the groundwork to get the mill’s capacity increased. All necessary permissions were taken by us while the AAP government is taking the credit for the project.”

Seenu Duggal, MD of SugarFed, who accompanied the CM, said, “The mill will now operate at a capacity of 5,000 tonnes per day. A 28.50-MW power plant, too, has been inaugurated. The mill will use some of the power generated for its own operations besides selling the surplus to the state grid, thus generating additional revenue.” The CM said farmers would now get Rs 416 per quintal for sugarcane.

Mann said to tide over the lack of doctors working in state-run hospitals, his government was all set to start a recruitment drive. “We are making it mandatory for newly recruited doctors to serve the first two years of their service in border areas,” he said. He denied illegal mining in the state.

“Farmers are selling sand under the ‘Jiska Khet, Uski Ret’ policy. There are some people who used to do unlawful excavation by using this policy as a camouflage,” the Chief Minister added.