Express interview: ‘Punjab can implement Sir Chottu Ram formula to address farm woes,’ says Sunil Jakhar

Our government has done what no other state governments could do in the past. The state government with its limited sources of income has provided a big relief to the farmers by waiving off the debt of lakhs of small and marginal farmers. Being a state government we can mitigate the problems and not eradicate them completely. When we came to power in 2017, the state was in a state of financial bankruptcy and even then we took up several welfare steps for farmers.

Also, there are reports that central government may step back from the MSP of assured crops like wheat and paddy and if it happens we will fight it tooth and nail and not let our farmers down.

One the one hand, the central government is talking about doubling the income of farmers by 2022 but on the other hand, it is withdrawing even from procurement.

How can the issue of huge debts be resolved?

It is a major issue and the Centre should support the state government to help the farmers not only in waiving off the debt but also in formulating a strong regulatory authority for all the banks as several banks are involved in giving huge loans to small and marginal after mortgaging their small landholdings.

It is being said that there is around Rs 90,000 to 1 lakh crore debt on farmers of Punjab. When Punjab has only 100 lakh acres cultivable land then crop loan limit per crop cycle should not be more than Rs 25,000 crore. The government can take care of only crop loans of farmers, not the loans taken for personal purposes.

Why Punjab has no agriculture policy despite being an agrarian state?

Punjab has already formed an agriculture policy and it is high time that it is discussed on the floor of the House by all parties so that the best policy can be formulated. Even public and experts’ suggestions are welcome.

Why has kurki not been banned on the ground despite it being a major promise of the government?

The government has abolished Section 67 (A) of the Punjab Cooperative Societies Act 1961, and this bans kurki, but to cover arthtiyas and private/commercial banks is a long process. We are committed to the welfare of the farmers and will try to resolve every issue related to them.

How can diversification be made effective to save the groundwater of Punjab?

We have diversified more than 7 lakh acres from paddy in the last Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) and are committed to diverting more and pushing the Centre to support the state in this direction.

Can ‘Sir Chhotu Ram’ formula (on-farm debt repayment) be implemented here?

Yes, it can be implemented and we will discuss it. This is quite an effective formula and may mitigate several farmer related issues.

Why does Punjab not have the count of tenant farmers who are mostly exploited by the owners of the land at the time of providing subsidies or other benefits?

This is another issue that needs to be resolved. And in the government, we face such difficulties at the time of providing subsidies because owners of the land want subsidies to be transferred in their accounts rather than in the accounts of actual cultivators (tenant farmer). We will certainly take up this matter.