Committed to clear arrears by Sept 7, says CM; govt withdraws letter of auction of Phagwara Sugar Mill

The official statement said the state government had on Thursday released Rs 100 crore to sugarcane farmers and this was deposited in their bank accounts on Friday.

The chief minister said with this payment, cooperative sugar mills in the state have already paid Rs 526.27 crore to farmers.

Meanwhile, the Punjab government withdrew the letter of open auction of the Phagwara Sugar mill property and directed the Kapurthala deputy commissioner to expedite direct registry of the property by taking into loop mill owners, farmers and buyers.

Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal disclosed this after a two-hour-long meeting with farmers’ representatives and senior officials late in the evening.

Admitting that the open auction letter had become a bone of contention and angered farmers, the minister said the state government had done so in hope of getting more amount from the property in this way. But now we have withdrawn the letter and a copy of it by the Punjab financial commissioner (Revenue) was handed over to farmers, he said.

Claiming that the AAP government stands behind farmers like a rock, the minister said they will not allow the management to shut the mill. “We will initiate legal action for taking it over and running it but if there were some legal hurdle, we will sell cane of farmers to other mills,” he said.

He urged farmers to lift their indefinite dharna and road blockade. However, Manjit Singh Rai, said that they will hold a meeting on Saturday to discuss the letter and take further course of action accordingly.