Chandigarh, Sept. 7 -- Farmers protesting at the Chandigarh-Mohali border called off their stir on Monday evening after the Punjab government gave a written assurance accepting their key demands. The formal assurance was handed over to farmer representatives by Agriculture minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian.
Under the agreement, the Punjab Government will convene a special session of the Vidhan Sabha within a month to pass resolutions on several issues and forward them to the Centre. These include seeking reconsideration of water-sharing agreements, repeal of Sections 78, 79 and 80 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act to restore the state's riparian rights, annulment of the Dam Safety Act and withdrawal of the Seed Bill, 2025.
Khudian said the Bhagwant Mann Government was committed to farmers' welfare and believed in resolving issues through dialogue. "The Bhagwant Mann Government is fully committed to the welfare of our annadatas. We believe in resolving issues through dialogue and have accepted their genuine demands with full transparency in writing," he said. To address farmers' debt burden, the minister announced that an One-Time Settlement (OTS) policy would be formulated for outstanding loans, particularly those taken from cooperative banks and societies. A committee involving representatives of all political parties will be constituted to frame the policy.
Khudian said Punjab would continue to offer the highest sugarcane price in the country and directed that the file for fixing the price be initiated immediately. He also said pending dues owed to farmers by private sugar mills would be cleared in a time-bound manner.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.