Chandigarh, Oct 13 (IANS) To address the grievances of Punjab’s farming community, a high-level meeting was held on Tuesday here between the state government’s Group of Ministers and the Bharatiya Kisan Union-Ekta Ugrahan led by Joginder Singh Ugrahan, and it was agreed to ensure time-bound resolution of the latter’s issues.
Deputed by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, the Group of Ministers (GoM) comprising Cabinet Ministers Harpal Singh Cheema, Aman Arora, and Gurmeet Singh Khudian held extensive discussions with the farmer representatives.
The ministerial delegation was joined by Additional Chief Secretary, Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Anurag Verma, along with senior officers from various departments.
Addressing the media after discussions based on a memorandum submitted by the union, Finance Minister Cheema said: “The dialogue had taken place in a highly cordial atmosphere and resulted in a strong consensus on several crucial matters.”
Acknowledging farmers as the backbone of Punjab’s agriculture and overall economy, he emphasised the government’s commitment to their welfare.
“During the exhaustive discussions on the union’s demands, mutually agreeable timeframes of one to two months were established to ensure the systematic and timely resolution of the accepted local issues,” he said.
Addressing the specific demand concerning pending first information reports (FIRs) registered against farmers during past agitations, Cheema said: “A significant number of these cases have already been cancelled by the state. For the approximately 13 to 16 cases currently pending in various courts, the government has devised a strategic, stage-wise legal framework to facilitate their prompt withdrawal.”
Responding to the union’s demand for a dedicated budget allocation to cover crop damage, the Finance Minister informed the representatives that the state government had already earmarked Rs 750 crore for compensation and that the disbursal process for affected farmers was underway. The discussions also focused on compensation for tenant farmers.
Furthermore, a highly sympathetic view was taken regarding the longstanding issue of cultivators who have been tilling land for several decades without formal ownership rights.
–IANS
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