CHANDIGARH: A day before wheat procurement begins in Punjab, the arhtiyas (commission agents) on Friday decided to go ahead with their pre-announced strike against the Centre’s direct benefit transfer (DBT) of payment to farmers even as the Amarinder government is working on a new mechanism to keep the arhtiyas relevant.
Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh met Vijay Kalra, president of the Federation of Arhtiyas, but the meeting was inconclusive.
Procurement of about 130 lakh metric tonnes of wheat will kick off in Punjab from Saturday. Punjab mandi board chairman Lal Singh has appealed to farmers to bring their produce in a staggered manner in view of the pandemic, for which passes are being issued through the arhtiyas. The boycott call can imperil this process.
After the meeting with the CM, Kalra said, “We have decided to go ahead with our decision to go on strike. The state government did not spell out a clear system they plan to introduce... A meeting of the arhtiyas has been called on Saturday in Ludhiana.”
Punjab food and civil supplies minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu told TOI he was confident that the issue would be resolved by Saturday. “He (the CM) gave directions that such a new system should be put in place that the arhtiyas continue to be relevant.