Punjab chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Tuesday said it was unfortunate that the farmers agitating against the farm Laws had given a political twist to his remarks instead of understanding the misery caused to the people by their protests in the state, which were quite uncalled for, given his government’s continued support to them.
Reiterating that the stir was damaging interests of state and its people, Amarinder lamented that despite his government’s unequivocal support to their cause, the farmers had misinterpreted his appeal and had, instead, tried to link it with the upcoming assembly polls in the state, he said.
In a written statement, the CM said his government, as well as the people of Punjab, had always stood with the farmers on the issue of the farm laws, and it was sad that they were now suffering due to the continued protests of the farming community across the state.
Amarinder, while addressing an event on Monday, had appealed to the farmer unions not to hold protests in Punjab as they were affecting the state’s economy. The CM’s statement drew flak from farmer leaders who attributed the statement to his fear that the farm stir could damage his party’s prospects in the upcoming state polls.The Punjab CM asserted that there was no question of trying to split the farmers of Punjab and Haryana, all of whom were equal victims of the apathy of the BJP-led governments at the Centre and in the neighbouring state. He pointed out that it was not the Adanis or the Ambanis whose interests were being hurt by such protests but the common people of the state, as well as its economy. The Adanis’ assets in Punjab were a miniscule 0.8% of the total, and the presence of the Reliance Group stood at a nominal 0.1%, the chief minister said, adding that the losses caused to these industries due to the farmers’ unrest in the state were too minor to be of any serious concern to them.
He said continued protests in Punjab would push industry out of the state and have a severe impact on the economy. The situation was already becoming serious on the grain storage and procurement front due to the agitation, with lifting of the stocks by the FCI and state agencies getting obstructed, he said, adding that the stocks lying in the FCI Adani silio at Moga alone was worth ₹480 crore.
“All the movement of wheat stocks from FCI Adani silo, Moga, and FCI silo, Kotkapura, is halted due to the on-going farmers protest, whereas, 1,60,855 MT of wheat stocks of previous crop years stored in the Adani silo, Moga, by FCI needs to be liquidated on priority, as deterioration of these stocks may lead to losses to the Public exchequer”.The CM said that construction of silos awarded by FCI was getting delayed as farmer unions were not allowing JCBs and trucks to enter the construction sites. “What is further likely to damage the state’s interests is reports of silo concessionaires/parties also considering to shut down the projects being set up in Punjab. If things continue in this manner, we will lose out on investment, revenue and employment opportunities,” he warned, adding that this would lead to serious paralysis of the government in Punjab.
