Gurdaspur November 17:
Gurdaspur MP Partap Singh Bajwa led a delegation of the Rice Millers Association (Jalandhar Division), which met Sharad Pawar, Minister of Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution and apprised him of the problems being faced by the rice millers of Majha region.
Bajwa told the minister that a substantial quantity of custom-milled rice for the year 2009-10 had been left undelivered as the FCI was not lifting the stocks as the rice allegedly did not conform to specifications.
Bajwa, who was accompanied by Balkrishen Mittal, president of the Rice Millers Association (Jalandhar Division), which comprises Gurdaspur, Kapurthala, Tarn Taran, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar and Nawashahar districts, claimed that the Central Government should pay Rs 100 per quintal for upgradation purposes so that the rice meets the requisite specifications following which the FCI would be in a position to accept rice stocks.
He added that the Central Government had given the state government Rs 189.20 crore so that millers could upgrade the quality of rice. “The state was to distribute the money equally among all the rice millers in the state but somehow that money has not been distributed to millers falling under the jurisdiction of Jalandhar division,” remarked Bajwa.
Balkrishen Mittal claimed that the Punjab Government had given Rs 200 per quintal to millers of Mansa and Bathinda districts and Rs 100 per quintal to farmers belonging to other districts of Punjab. However, he claimed, not a single penny had been paid to millers of Jalandhar division, which was totally unjustifiable on the part of the Punjab Government and was gross injustice to millers of Jalandhar region.
Gurdaspur MP Partap Singh Bajwa led a delegation of the Rice Millers Association (Jalandhar Division), which met Sharad Pawar, Minister of Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution and apprised him of the problems being faced by the rice millers of Majha region.
Bajwa told the minister that a substantial quantity of custom-milled rice for the year 2009-10 had been left undelivered as the FCI was not lifting the stocks as the rice allegedly did not conform to specifications.
Bajwa, who was accompanied by Balkrishen Mittal, president of the Rice Millers Association (Jalandhar Division), which comprises Gurdaspur, Kapurthala, Tarn Taran, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar and Nawashahar districts, claimed that the Central Government should pay Rs 100 per quintal for upgradation purposes so that the rice meets the requisite specifications following which the FCI would be in a position to accept rice stocks.
He added that the Central Government had given the state government Rs 189.20 crore so that millers could upgrade the quality of rice. “The state was to distribute the money equally among all the rice millers in the state but somehow that money has not been distributed to millers falling under the jurisdiction of Jalandhar division,” remarked Bajwa.
Balkrishen Mittal claimed that the Punjab Government had given Rs 200 per quintal to millers of Mansa and Bathinda districts and Rs 100 per quintal to farmers belonging to other districts of Punjab. However, he claimed, not a single penny had been paid to millers of Jalandhar division, which was totally unjustifiable on the part of the Punjab Government and was gross injustice to millers of Jalandhar region.
