Allot 1000 MW Of Power To Punjab From Central Quota To Ensure Nation’s Food Security  - Badal

CM Justifies Banning Of ACs In Government Offices,4-Days Sangat Darshan In Dasuya Concluded

5 Dariya News

 Dasuya 30-Jul-2012

In a bid to safeguard the Nation’s Food Security, the Punjab Chief Minister Mr Parkash Singh Badal today asked the Union government to immediately allot atleast 1000 MW of power to the state from Central quota to enable the farmers to cope with the drought like situation prevailing in the region due to monsoon failure so that they could nurture their paddy during the current Kharif season.  Talking to the media persons on the sidelines of the concluding day of the Sangat Darshan program of Dasuya Assembly segment, the Chief Minister said that the state was a major contributor of the Rice in the Central pool and keeping in view the importance of power in ongoing paddy season, the Union government must allot more power to the state. He reiterated that the ongoing power crisis in the state was due to natural reasons and the government had hardly any role to play in it. However Mr Badal said that for the sake of a national cause the Union government must show magnanimity by generously allocating more power to the state so as to cater the needs of the farmers.The Chief Minister further said that he had already met the Union Power Minister Mr Sushil Kumar Shinde on the issue. Expressing hope that the Union Government would bail out the peasantry of the state in this hour of crisis, Mr Badal said that the allocation of extra power would also help in meeting the demand of industrial and domestic sector. Justifying the changing of timings and banning of Air Conditioners in the offices of the state government, he said these were the corrective steps mandatory to be taken for  saving power in this difficult time.Replying to a query regarding the felicitation of Olympic medal winners by the state government, the Chief Minister categorically said that the state government was committed to honour the players from the state who would bring medals for the country in the ongoing Olympic games at London in accordance with its sports policy. Mr Badal further said that in past also the state government had honored several eminent sportspersons hailing from Punjab who have brought laurels to the country in different sports events at the International forum viz. Olympics, Commonwealth and Asian Games. The Chief Minister said that besides it the SAD-BJP alliance government had already taken several path breaking initiatives to promote sports in big way as it had already appointed of 10 internationally acclaimed sportspersons from Punjab as DSPs.Lashing out at the Congress led UPA Government at the Centre, the Chief Minister said that it was unfortunate that the government which had come to power solely on the plank of the welfare of common man had completely ignored him but on the contrary was extending largesse to the big private industrial houses, at the cost of the welfare of the poor man. He further said that much to disadvantage of the common man the Union government has exorbitantly hiked the prices of petroleum products several times.  Mr Badal said that the hike in fuel prices has on one hand broken the back of common man besides putting an additional burden on the farming community due to massive hike in the agricultural inputs but on the other hand the big petroleum companies were minting money due to their direct excess to the Union government, or we can say these companies were hand in glove with the Centre. Earlier addressing the gathering Mr Badal said that in today’s era of industrial advancement, the technical education has played a pivotal role in the overall development of any inpidual.  Realizing the tremendous potential of education in shaping the destiny of youth to compete them in the global market, the state government has already laid thrust on imparting professional courses to check the widespread problem of employment to considerable extent. Likewise, Badal said that in order to impart skill training to the youth the state government would also focus on establishing more reputed technical institutes across the state, adding the state government was also making concerted efforts for promoting dairy, emu and fish farming in the state. The Chief Minister reiterated the need to tap the vast potential of setting up agro food processing units in the Kandi region by support of the state government.   He appreciated the outstanding contribution of certain self help groups actively engaged in the direct marketing of their agricultural produce by way of value addition in the region to promote the concept of self employment which was the need of the hour as the scope of giving government jobs to the people was limited.   Badal also mentioned he had recently announced to give 50% subsidy for setting up the agro processing units to promote direct marketing of their agro produce on one hand and to motivate the local people to form these self help groups so that they could reap maximum benefits from this scheme. The Chief Minister also sanctioned grant of nearly Rs 5 crore for carrying out developmental works in 41 villages of the Dasuya assembly segment.Prominent amongst those present on the occasion included MLA  Sukhjeet Kaur Sahi, Rajya Sabha MP Mr Avinash Rai Khanna and Special Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Mr Gurkirat Kirpal Singh.