Farmer unions meet Bhagwant Mann, seek compensation for damaged wheat crop

Farmers' leader Jagjit Dallewal said that CM Bhagwant Mann has assured them of help and the decision on the compensation and MSP on various crops will be taken after an assessment.

Leaders of 23 farmer unions met Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday and demanded a compensation of Rs 500 per quintal for the damaged wheat crop.

Farmer leader Jagjit Dallewal, while speaking to the media, said that the chief minister has assured them all help and the decision on the compensation and MSP on various crops, including maize, basmati rice and pulses will be taken after an assessment. A second meeting between the farmers' union and the chief minister has been scheduled for next week.

In a bid to effectively check the fast depleting water table, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann exhorted the farmers to go for Direct Seeding of Rice (DSR) technology in a big way during the current Kharif Season.

Chairing a meeting of Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) led by its coordinator Dr Darshan Pal here at Punjab Bhawan this afternoon, Bhagwant Mann sought input from the representatives of 23 farmers’ organisations present in the meeting to suggest the state government for providing staggered power supply to the agriculture sector thus facilitating the farmers for sowing paddy through DSR technique and the conventional paddy transplantation.

The chief minister said the proposed staggered power supply would help in avoiding the peak load during the paddy sowing season. He also suggested ensuring equitable power supply through PSPCL as per region-wise demand, thus dividing the entire state into four zones. Mann also directed the officers to visit the villages to encourage farmers to adopt the DSR technique during the ensuing paddy season to save water and electricity.

Showing concern over the findings of a study conducted by PAU experts, the Chief Minister said that it is a high time to shift from the paddy transplantation to the eco-friendly and economically viable DSR technique, which would go a long way in saving the groundwater up to 15 20 per cent, besides enhancing and recharging the underground water by 10 15 per cent and saving nearly Rs 3000 per acre on input costs, including labour.