New Delhi, June 18: Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Monday sought the intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the settlement of Rs. 31,000 crore of Food Account on procurement of wheat and paddy, which was wrongly taken over by the erstwhile state government instead of being adjusted between state & central governments.
The Chief Minister raised the issue with the Prime Minister during a meeting here.
The Rs. 31,000 crore included Rs. 12000 crore principal and Rs. 19000 crore interest, said the Chief Minister, pointing out that the sum was on account of non-adjustment of accounts for procurement done by state agencies for FCI from 2003-2004 onwards.
He had been pursuing the matter since taking over as Chief Minister and it was now pending for decision with the Union Finance Ministry, Capt Amarinder told the Prime Minister. He further pointed out that the State was already facing an annual interest payment liability of Rs. 324 crore and the total payoff might touch Rs. 65000 crore, which was totally untenable for the state.
The Chief Minister also reiterated his demand for special package for the development of the border areas of Punjab, which he had been pushing for in view of the fact that the state has an active International Border, with several thickly populated areas located close to it. Captain Amarinder lamented that the criteria for allocation of funds for Border Areas Development was unfavourable for Punjab and requested Modi’s support in correcting the anomaly.
Captain Amarinder also made a strong request to the Prime Minister for central financial assistance for the celebrations of the 550th Anniversary of Prakash Utsav of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji, beginning November 2019. He pointed to the Memorandum already sent by the state government to the Prime Minister for financial assistance of Rs 2145 crore and for dedicating some national projects in the memory of the First Guru.
The Chief Minister requested the Prime Minister to constitute an organizing committee at national level for commemorating the event in a befitting manner.
Pointing out that 100 years of Jallianwala Bagh massacre would be observed on 13 April, 2019 at Amritsar, and the Prime Minister chairs the Jallianwala Bagh Trust, Capt Amarinder said he had sent a request seeking grant of Rs. 100 crore for development of surrounding areas and related facilities in Amritsar. He urged the Prime Minister to direct the Ministry of Culture to extend the necessary assistance to the state for this purpose.
The Chief Minister also took up the issue of the problems being faced by the state’s farmers and reiterated his request for a National Debt Waiver Scheme, besides making the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojna 100% centrally funded.
During the meeting, the Chief Minister also reiterated his demand procurement of alternate crops such as Maize, Pulses and Oilseeds by central agencies.
Seeking early clearance of Shahpur Kandi Project on Ravi, which was being taken up as a project of National Importance on 90:10 funding pattern, the Chief Minister said it would help utilize Ravi waters more effectively and improve the efficiency of Ranjit Sagar Dam. The Punjab Government has signed an agreement with Jammu & Kashmir but the revised estimate was pending with Government of India for approval, he informed the Prime Minister.
Seeking assistance for the river cleaning project on Satluj and Beas on lines of the Ganga Action Plan, Capt Amarinder told Modi that Punjab was faced with an imminent water crisis with contamination of ground water and falling water table.
