Capt takes up issue with food minister

The farmers are being forced into a situation where, out of sheer desperation, they would have to sell their paddy at lower rates, helping the Akali middlemen make money.

AMARINDER SINGH, Punjab Congress president

NEW DELHI: Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh on Friday raised the issue of problems faced by farmers on procurement in the state with Union food and public distribution minister Ram Vilas Paswan.

Alleging a nexus between the Akali government and inspectors in state mandis, he complained to Paswan over phone that as a result of this "collusion", the farmers' paddy was not being picked up from mandis.

"The farmers were thus being forced into a situation where, out of sheer desperation, they would have to sell their paddy at lower rates, helping the Akali middlemen make money out of the criminal nexus," he told Paswan.

In the telephonic conversation, the food minister assured Amarinder that he would look into the matter on priority and take required action.

The PPCC chief told Paswan that he had personally visited several mandis, where he had checked the paddy quality and found the moisture content within the permissible range. "Yet, procurement inspectors were rejecting the same paddy citing excess moisture," he pointed out, adding, "this clearly showed a strong and unholy nexus involving the Akalis."