PADDY SEED SCAM UNDER AAP’S WATCH: SIDHU

FARIDKOT: Former Punjab Congress president Navjot Singh Sidhu on Thursday alleged that a “seed scam” of PR-126 variety was taking place under watch of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in the state amid attempts to promote direct seeding of rice (DSR).

Sidhu, who visited the Punjab State Seed Corporation (Punseed) warehouse at Kotkapura in Faridkot district where farmers had on Tuesday stopped a truck loaded with 87 quintals of PR-126 seeds, said that “On one hand, AAP government is spending crores on advertising DSR technique and on the other, a big scam of PR-126 variety seed is taking place.”

The farmers had stopped the truck alleging that the PR-126 seeds were being sold to a private firm in Mansa even as they had been told that it was out of stock. After farmers stopped the truck, Punseed distributed the whole stock among farmers. An official of the agriculture department said, “We had sold the seeds to the private firm a few days ago, and were transporting it on Tuesday. There was nothing illegal as the seeds were sold to the private firm in accordance with the rates set by the government.”