Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Monday warned against any censorship by cable distribution companies, saying action would be taken against Fastway or any other organisation indulging in such activity.Responding to questions from mediapersons at a press conference here, the Chief Minister reiterated his promise of a level playing field for all, and said while his government would not indulge in political vendetta, it would take strict action against any media or cable organisation found engaged in censorship of any channel or information.The Chief Minister lashed out at Akali leader and Union Food Processing Minister Harsmirat Kaur Badal over her statement accusing the government of misleading the people over debt waiver. She obviously had no clue about what she was talking and was trying to befool the people of Punjab, he said, quipping that she should restrict herself to food processing, which was what she had been entrusted with.On the issue of whitefly infestation of cotton crops, Captain Amarinder pointed out that he had personally visited Mansa and met the affected cotton farmers, who had been impacted by poor quality seeds coupled with bad weather conditions. He said fields with problems had been isolated and strict monitoring was being done of the situation by the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), which was spraying pesticides at its own cost.
He lashed out at the Akalis for ruining the farming community during the 10 years of their misrule, with 7000 farmers having committed suicide in this period. It was unfortunate that farmers were still committing suicide, said the Chief Minister, reassuring the farmers that their loans up to Rs. 2 lakh had been waived off by his government and there was no need for them to take the extreme step.Noting that this was the first time that the chief minister of the state would be hoisting the Independence Day flag in Gurdaspur, Captain Amarinder dismissed opposition charges that he was not visiting the state, saying one had to go with a purpose, especially considering the huge amount of work his government needed to do to bring the state’s economy back on track.To a question, the Chief Minister said his government’s campaign against drugs had been highly successful, with over 6900 dealers and suppliers already in police net. He said huge quantities of drugs including 95 Kgs of heroin had been seized. "The big players in the trade are being chased by the police and would be arrested soon", he said adding that many of the so-called big fish in the trade had fled the state.
The Chief Minister said as many as 20 major industrial houses, along with countries like China and Russia, had shown interest in investing in the state. He said that for the first time the government was organizing a Job Mela at Mohali to provide opportunities of gainful employment to the youth. His government, said Captain Amarinder, would provide all possible assistance to the encourage investment and industry in the state and take initiatives to generate employment for the youth of Punjab.To a question on former Vice President Hamid Ansari's statement that minorities in India were feeling "insecure", he said that there was no insecurity among any of the communities in Punjab.Expressing concern over the depleting water table, the Chief Minister said he would discuss the issue of water conservation during his visit to Israel next month. Besides drip irrigation, his government was studying Hydroponics and Aeroponics as ways to conserve water, he added.