Chandigarh 29 August : Shiromani Akali Dal President Sukhbir Singh Badal on Monday demanded that the Punjab’s Aam Aadmi Party government release an amount of Rs 300 crore in a comprehensive settlement package to dairy farmers whose livelihoods are at risk due to their milch animals falling prey to lumpy skin diseases (LSD).Indicating the government for its inability to assist of dairy farmers, by refusing to pay an amount of compensation of one lakh per head in cases of more than 50,000 deaths of cattle, he said: “Now it seems that a larger package is required to assist dairy farmers who had their cattle struck by the disease but were able to survive.
“The cattle are registering an increase in production of milk by 20 percent.A large number of farmers have paid massive sums of funds to treat their livestock with the Animal Husbandry Department falling short in treating animals and even in the release of vaccines that fight the disease.All of them must be compensated since the entire dairy industry is in an era of crises.”
Badal also demanded that the government to honor the promise made in the Budget session in the Vidhan Sabha that it would hike the cost of milk procurement to the equivalent of Rs 55 per kilogram of fat.
“This assurance was made by MILKFED as well as the Punjab government.While MILKFED began paying farmers 20 rupees per kilogram of fat on May 21st however, the Punjab government has not yet paying dairy farmers Rs.35 per kg fat in the last three months.”
In announcing that the dairy industry has been strengthened in Punjab in the past couple of decades with the goal of increasing the income of farmers through other actions, Badal said then Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal even handed over this task to the state farmer’s commission that was established by him.
“This action led in an enormous increase in the standard of the livestock in Punjab.These gains will be wasted in the event that the government in power does not pay farmers for the massive losses they’ve suffered.
The whole white revolution plan will fail,” he added.
Admitting that the vaccination process against LSD was insufficient even after the disease broke out in July, Badal said, “It is even more shameful to note that the Animal Husbandry Department has failed to make available funds to treat LSD and the administration of the district has been compelled to instruct the village panchayats that they pay the cost.”
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