Finally, relief may be on way for the state which had put all its resources on stake last year in order to retain the status of “food sufficient nation” for India.
The Union government is likely to release Rs 800 crore for Punjab as compensation for all the drastic measures that the state took in order to sustain paddy crop last year in the wake of severe drought which had ravaged the crop elsewhere in the country. Haryana, the second state to have managed that feat, is also likely to be rewarded with Rs 400 crore relief package. Revealing this on Wednesday, Punjab CM PS Badal said he had been told informally by the Union government that strong recommendations have been sent by the agriculture ministry and the Planning Commission to release this amount for the two states, who had pulled all stops to sustain the crop and send sufficient stocks to the national pool.
“I was personally assured by the agriculture minister and other officials that Punjab would be compensated adequately. We are now waiting for the official communication,” Badal said.
Last week, TOI had highlighted how Punjab has expressed its helplessness on continuing as nation’s granary in the wake of severe restraints on its resources, as well as the absence of any help from the Union government. Since July last year, the state has been sending representations for help to the Union government, describing how it had incurred an expenditure of nearly Rs 3,000 crore for raising the paddy crop during drought, where absence of rains and severe power shortage had forced farmers to burn gallons of diesel to pump out underground water for irrigation.