Jakhar welcomes decision to abolish Kurki, appeals to farmers not to commit suicide

Chandigarh, May 31, 2017: Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) President Sunil Jakhar on Wednesday welcomed the Captain Amarinder Singh government’s decision to scrap ‘Kurki’ to bring succour to the state's debt-ridden farmers.

Terming it as first in a series of farmer friendly decisions to be taken by the government to rescue the state’s beleaguered peasantry from the debt crisis, Jakhar thanked the Chief Minister for fulfilling his poll promise to provide the much required relief to the farmers from auction of their land to repay their loans.

Captain Amarinder, by abolishing Section 67-A of Punjab Cooperative Societies Act 1961, had done a huge service to the farmers of the state and had displayed his strong will and dedication to the cause of the farming community of the State, Jakhar added.

He said the government's move to abolish kurki should be welcomed by all political parties, particularly those which claim to be pro-farmers.

The PPCC Chief hoped that State Government would also soon announce the impending farm debt waiver - another poll promise of the Congress party - which would be another major step in providing relief to the farming sector. He pointed out that the commission under former CACP head Mr. T Haq was working to assess the quantum of agricultural debt.

Noting that the farmers of Punjab had been instrumental in making the country self sufficient in the production of food grains, Jakhar said the Congress government was committed to waiving off their debts and alleviating their sufferings, and appealed to the farming community not to commit suicides.

Reiterating the party’s strong commitment to uplift the farming sector reeling under a severe debt crisis due to the mismanagement of the erstwhile SAD-BJP government, Jakhar assured that his party and State Government would work cohesively to find lasting solutions to the problems of the farmers and the party would act as a link between the Government and the masses.

Underlining the changing trends in agriculture and the need to adopt these in order to make farming profitable, Jakhar said the Government needs to promote the idea of crop diversification on a war footing as it has become necessary to break the wheat-paddy cycle. He stressed the need for the
Government to come up with a policy decision to reduce the area under paddy cultivation and promote crops consuming less water.

He also urged the Government to draw up a comprehensive roadmap to make farming more profitable by educating farmers to start producing more cash crops.