Punjab News: The free farm power programme would continue in the state, according to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, days after the Public Accounts Committee of the Punjab Assembly proposed that the government start charging large farmers for the electricity used for tubewells. “The PAC keeps making recommendations on several issues from time to time. We have no proposal. There would be no metering. We cannot discriminate between small and big farmers. Punjab has no dearth of funds,” Mann said Thursday in a reply to reporters’ questions.
CM Bhagwant Mann Addresses Concerns over Free Agricultural Electricity
Mann stated that “canal water is the biggest solution to conserve our aquifers” in response to the accusation that free agricultural electricity is to blame for the careless use of subsurface water. This year, we were able to use canal water to irrigate crops on 44% of the land. Earlier, it was between 35% and 36%. We aim to increase it to 70% the next year. Underground pipe installation is already underway. This guarantees that canal water is not wasted, he said.
Balancing Tubewell Usage and Water Conservation
He claimed there were 14 lakh tubewell connections pumping water from our aquifers and added that the administration was attempting to avoid granting new tubewell connections. Three ministries involved in canal water irrigation are being merged by the government to speed up decision-making. “We have a responsibility to preserve water for future generations. Flooding is causing 1.5 to 2 lakh cubic seconds to pass through Harike. With this water, we should top off our aquifers, he suggested. Mann later stated that farmers would not choose to abandon paddy, a crop that consumes a lot of water, until an economically viable replacement was provided. He claimed that he had instructed Punjab Agricultural University to test out other crops before recommending them to farmers. He claimed it was challenging to distinguish between large and small farms. The large parcels of land could be divided in a variety of ways.
CM Bhagwant Mann’s Policy Shift and Challenges
He added that NABARD was also offering Rs 25,000 for paddy crop holiday in every acre. “We have now asked them to raise it to 35,000 per acre. We can add Rs 5,000 per acre. If the farmers get Rs 40,000 per acre for not sowing paddy every season, they could opt for it. “ The PAC, led by Congressman Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, recommended in a letter to the government that free electricity be taken away from large farmers with landholdings larger than five hectares, that all agricultural tubewells be metered, and that tubewells close to canal networks be disconnected. Free farm power rationalisation has been a long-standing demand before the various governments. Punjab pays a hefty subsidy bill for electricity in the amount of Rs 20,000 crore. Every home has received 300 rupees worth of free electricity thanks to the AAP government. The programme is a major financial strain on the state budget. A total of 3.62 lakh medium and large farmers receive 56% of the power subsidy, with the remaining 44% going to the 7.29 lakh small, semi-sized, and marginal farmers. The farm electricity subsidy was dubbed “regressive” by a panel of experts (GoE) assembled by the previous chief minister Amarinder Singh since it mostly benefitted large farmers.
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