Chandigarh, October 14
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab has expressed deep concern over the acute shortage of DAP fertilizer in the state as the shortage of fertilizer would adversely affect the sowing of Rabi crops especially wheat. Blaming the BJP government at the centre and the Congress government in Punjab directly for the unforeseen shortfall in DAP, AAP Punjab Kisan Wing state president and MLA Kultar Singh Sandhwan said that this deliberate crisis was a deep conspiracy against the farmers and Punjab.
In a statement issued from the party headquarters here on Thursday, Kultar Singh Sandhwan said, “In Punjab, Rabi crops like wheat, potato, fodder etc are sown immediately after harvesting of paddy and the DAP fertilizer is very much required for sowing of these crops. The central and state government coordinates this important need in advance. But it seems that by not providing adequate supply of DAP fertilizer in time, while the Union Government is taking revenge from Punjab and its farmers; the Punjab government is also in slumber, because 5.5 lakh tonnes of DAP is required for sowing Rabi crops in the agriculture-oriented state of Punjab. But at present there is only a stock of 74,000 tonnes of fertilizer. Accordingly, there is a shortage of 4.80 lakh tonnes of fertilizer in the state.”
He said that 87 percent shortage of DAP fertilizer in Punjab would adversely affect the sowing of Rabi crops, black-marketing would start and the farmers would be financially robbed. Sandhwan said that it was the responsibility of the Narendra Modi-led central government to provide fertilizer supply to Punjab which the government had failed to fulfill. He suspected that under the conspiracy to spoil the sowing of wheat in Punjab, the shortage of DAP fertilizer was being created as Punjab had received only 13 percent DAP fertilizer; despite the fact that the wheat-growing Rabi season was right around the corner.
The AAP leader further said that the Modi government was targeting the ‘annadatas’ of Punjab with a sense of revenge so that the farmers of Punjab could be punished for raising the flag against the black farm laws of the Union government. Criticizing the Channi government, Kultar Singh Sandhwan said the Punjab government was constantly proving to be ineffective in meeting the issues of the people and the needs of the farmers due to infighting as the Punjab government could not provide DAP fertilizer in advance; nor has it been able to alleviate the power cuts.
Sandhwan said due to the shortage of coal in Punjab, power supply was being cut off due to which the paddy crop was not getting the required water. As a result, while the yield of paddy will decrease, the sowing of Rabi crops will also lag behind. He demanded from the Union Government to provide adequate supply of DAP fertilizer to Punjab at the earliest so that the farmers of the state could sow the Rabi crops on time.
