Trade and Industry unit wing of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday flayed Captain Amarinder Singh government for being insensitive to the problems of a vast majority of industrialist and traders in the state. She alleged that all the subsequent governments in the state had blatantly ignored the small and medium-time traders’ concerns in the state.She said the people of the state had been paying a much higher rate of electricity when compared to other states of the country. She added that it as a matter concern that electricity rates had been hiked twice during the Congress government’s two year tenure.She said the state Government should take a cue from Delhi model of the Kejriwal-led AAP government which is providing electricity to its people at Re 1 per unit as against Rs 10 people were paying per unit in Punjab.Slamming the state finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal, Mittal, quoting party manifesto, said that he had promised the people to reduce the electricity rate to Rs 5 per unit. The tall promise has remained a mere paper promise only, she ridiculed.
The exorbitant rate of electricity had led a large number of small and middle-rung industries across the state to closure, she alleged.She further added that neither the SAD-BJP nor the Congress governments had been sensitive to the cause of industrialists and traders, who, she said, were a neglected lot. She alleged that the subsequent governments had maintained a stoic silence over the issue. The AAP would try its best to bring the traders’ concerns to the fore for redressal, she said.Co-president of the wing, Anil Thakur said that government in the saddle had miserably failed to expedite the process of refund amounting to Rs 600 crore on account of payment of VAT on GST to a vast of majority of industrialists and traders. He alleged that the government had been insensitive to the problems being faced by the small traders and industrialist in the state due to its hard stance. He said that due to the tax rebate and other facilities given to the neighbouring hilly states by the centre govt. the whole industry has moved to those states. He slammed Akali leader and union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal for failing to get even a single food processing project to state.