Punjab approachs Centre for wheat bonus to farmers

Moga, Apr 14 (UNI) The Punjab government has approached the Centre for giving bonus at the rate of Rs 50 per quintal on wheat to the farmers, state Food and Supplies minister Avtar Henry said today.

''The Punjab government has no such fund for giving bonus which should be provided by the central government as the state will be providing wheat to the central pool,'' the minister said, while talking to mediapersons here after inagurating a grain market at Salina village.

The minister disclosed that the state Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had approached the Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar in this context. Punjab has already asked the Union government to increase the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of wheat by Rs 100 per quintal from the current Rs 650 per quintal, he added.

This year Punjab will contribute 85 lakh metric tonnes of wheat to the central pool as compared to 92 lakh metric tonnes last year, as this year the area under wheat had declined due to the steps taken by the government for diversification from wheat and paddy, he said. Till yesterday, about 19.76 lakh metric tonnes of wheat had been procured in the state, he added.

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