Chadha reviews crop damaged in Punjab, writes to Centre for Compensation

New Delhi: AAP MP Raghav Chadha on Saturday has written to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, requesting compensation for losses caused to farmers in Punjab as a result of unseasonal rainfall. Chadha toured numerous fields and spoke with farmers to assess the destruction caused by the rains. The farmers expressed their misery to the MP and also offered him samples of their destroyed crop and begged him to apprise the Union Finance Minister about it.

Chadha, evidently shaken by the hardship of the framers, quickly penned a letter to FM Nirmala Sitharaman on the spot and delivered it along with samples of the damaged wheat crop. Chadha detailed the losses and informed the FM that the rains had damaged at least 14 lakh hectares (40%) of the 34.9 lakh hectares of wheat grown in Punjab during the Rabi season, leaving the farmers in distraught.

He praised the Punjab government's response, saying, "Our Hon'ble CM Bhagwant Mann has increased the relief sum from Rs 12,000 per acre to Rs 15,000 for agricultural loss."Acting swiftly based on initial sampling, additional steps such as the relaxation of uniform specifications for wheat procurement as mandated by DFPD have also been taken to help our farmers."

Chadha, on the other hand, feels that the Central Government cannot free itself of its responsibilities towards Punjab's farmers; especially considering the state's tremendous contribution to the nation's food security. He advised the FM to consider offering a special package to Punjab in order to recompense farmers more effectively for their losses.