CHANDIGARH: In three villages of Sangrur alone, not a single farmer out of nearly 600 identified beneficiaries had received the promised loan waiver despite these farmers being listed in Phase I and II, the Shiromani Akali Dal said on Friday. It asked Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh to explain the alarming spurt in the number of farmers' suicides in the state 1090 in two years under the Congress regime despite his tall claims on debt waiver.
"Even conservative estimates by independent agencies reveal that 1090 farmers have already committed suicide during just over 700 days of the Congress misrule and the figure does not include members of farmers families including women and children who have been forced to take the extreme step under sheer economic and psychological frustration," said the senior Akali leader Balwinder Singh Bhunder here today.
Bhunder said that even on the nominal debt waiver implemented by the Congress Government, farmers have been swindled by local Congress leaders In league with the revenue and other officials. "The Congress leaders are receiving cuts from the little waiver ordered by the state government, denying any relief to the targeted segment of farmers. In addition, less than 60 per cent deserving farmers have received a pittance of a relief whereas Amarinder had under oath on Guru's sacred 'charan' promised complete waiver of all kinds of debt for all farmers in the state it is a heartless betrayal of the beleaguered farmers by Amarinder. They trusted his oath and now they feel cheated," he said.
As per the latest agriculture census, the average landholding in Punjab is 3.6 hectares, but the state the government decided to waive loans up to Rs 2 lakh for only small and marginal farmers, who own up to two hectares of land.
The fund-starved Punjab Congress government in the last two years has provided debt relief of Rs 4736 crore to 5.83 lakh small and marginal farmers in the state. The fourth phase of the scheme initiated on March 8 from Moga had also brought 2.85 Lakh landless labourers under the ambit of the scheme, providing them relief to the tune of Rs 520 Crore.