Chandigarh, April 7 -- Rajya Sabha member Vikramjit Singh Sahney on Monday urged the Union government to immediately announce a special compensation package for farmers in Punjab who are facing severe losses due to recent unseasonal rains, hailstorms and strong winds.

In a letter to Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Sahney claimed that preliminary assessments indicated crop damage between 30% and 70% across the state. "With over 34 lakh hectares under wheat cultivation, the scale of devastation is immense and deeply concerning for the agrarian economy," he said, appreciating the Punjab government's decision to order a special girdawari to assess losses.

Senior SAD leader and Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal, through a le...