Chandigarh, April 10 (IANS) Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Friday slammed the Congress and other Opposition parties for misleading farmers on crop procurement, asserting the government has put in place comprehensive and robust arrangements to ensure a smooth, transparent, and hassle-free procurement process across all grain markets.
The Chief Minister told the media here that nodal officers have been appointed in every ‘mandi’, Additional Chief Secretary-level officers have been assigned district-wise responsibilities, and ministers, MLAs and senior officers are monitoring the situation on the ground to ensure that farmers do not face any inconvenience.
Taking a dig at the previous Congress government led by Bhupinder Hooda, the Chief Minister said during its 10-year rule, governance took a backseat and farmers were left to suffer. He said farmers had to wait three to seven days outside ‘mandis’ to sell their produce, faced shortage of gunny bags, and their crops were often damaged due to rain, forcing them to arrange tarpaulins at their own expense.
He said the Congress should clarify how many warehouses were constructed during its tenure to safeguard crops. Procurement deductions, delayed payments and even token compensation of Rs 2 reflected the insensitivity of the previous regime towards farmers, he said.
Asserting the commitment of the government, the Chief Minister said, “We will procure every single grain produced by our farmers. Congress policies were not aimed at public welfare but served limited interests,” he said, adding the party has now lost touch with ground realities.
Highlighting the Centre’s efforts, he said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has worked with a clear focus on the welfare of the poor, ensuring that government schemes reach every village and every household, including those who cannot access government offices.
The Chief Minister said mustard procurement has been ongoing in the state since March 28. So far, 16,046 metric tons of mustard have arrived in ‘mandis’, out of which 3,421 metric tons have been procured by government agencies, while the remaining have been purchased by private traders. A total of 1,558 metric tons has been lifted from ‘mandis’.
He said payments amounting to Rs 4.94 crore have been transferred directly into farmers’ bank accounts through direct back transfer at the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 6,200 per quintal. Similarly, wheat procurement, which began on April 1, has recorded arrivals of 17.37 lakh metric tons, out of which 3.92 lakh metric tons have been procured so far.
–IANS
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