Chandigarh, Nov 10 (PTI) Punjab BJP chief Kewal Singh Dhillon on Tuesday slammed the Bhagwant Mann-led state government over its alleged failure to manage crop residue, asserting that the Aam Aadmi Party cannot escape its four-and-a-half-year record in the state by staging press conferences to blame Delhi.
Dhillon’s remark came after a political blame game erupted over the worsening air quality in the national capital.
Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Monday attacked the BJP on the stubble burning issue, alleging that it was sparing no effort to defame the state’s farmers and also dubbed as “lies” Delhi minister Kapil Mishra’s claims that Punjab farmers have alleged that their fields were deliberately being set on fire while they were celebrating Diwali.
Punjab witnessed its sharpest single-day spike in paddy stubble-burning incidents this season on Diwali with 1,152 fresh farm fires, which pushed the state’s total count to 4,459 from 3,307 on November 7, according to official data.
Punjab BJP president Dhillon said on November 4, 2022, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal publicly “accepted” responsibility for farm fires alongside Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, seeking one year to resolve the crisis.
Over four years into its tenure, the Mann administration has failed to provide accessible alternatives, leaving farmers stranded, Dhillon claimed in a statement.
He further asked, “Where is the bio-decomposer? What happened to the Pusa Bio-Decomposer heavily promoted by AAP? How many acres were sprayed, what was the state-level expenditure, and what measurable results were achieved?”
Dhillon said the Centre released Rs 2,056.50 crore to Punjab under the Crop Residue Management (CRM) Scheme up to 2025-26.
“Where has every single rupee been spent, and how much has actually reached farmers?” he asked.
“Where are the 94,456 machines? The agriculture department claims 94,456 CRM machines were deployed. How many are operational, how many Custom Hiring Centres are functional, and how many marginal farmers can actually access them during the sowing window?” he asked.
He said that while Haryana provides Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,200 per acre to its farmers, why did the Punjab government fail to independently fund its promised Rs 2,500-per-acre cash assistance?
He further questioned the Mann government over registering cases against small farmers and making punitive red entries in revenue records.
Dhillon demanded an immediate, independent audit of CRM machinery funds, an immediate rollback of red entries against farmers, and practical per-acre financial support. PTI CHS NB
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