CHANDIGARH: Lashing out at the Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for his failure to procure the Moong Dal crop at Minimum Support Price, the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Partap Singh Bajwa on Monday said that the anti-farmers face of the Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab has been exposed once again.
Referring to a news report, Bajwa said that there has been no government purchase of moong dal crop this year so far. Over 99 percent of the purchase has been made at rates below the minimum support price of Rs 8, 555 per quintal (announced by the Centre).
"Notably, the Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann himself persuaded the farmers to opt for the Moong Dal crop under the crop diversification programme in 2022. Meanwhile, this is the third consecutive year the hapless moong dal farmers were forced to sell their crops at a price below MSP. Not even a single effort has been made by the AAP government to bail out those farmers, who were forced to make distressed sales of Moong Dal Crop", Bajwa added.
Senior Congress Leader Bajwa said that in 2022, around 85 percent, and in 2023, around 83 percent of the Moong Dal farmers made distressed sales. However, the Punjab CM seemed to have been least bothered about making a robust strategy on the same.
"The Punjab CM along with his entire cabinet has camped in Jalandhar to campaign for the party candidate in Jalandhar West by-polls. He should know that he was a CM of the entire state, not Jalandhar West only. He is supposed to govern the state, not to campaign in the by-elections", Bajwa added.
The opposition leader said that despite lofty claims made by the Punjab CM, the vast majority of the flood-affected farmers did not get a single paisa as compensation, which is highly deplorable.