Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Tuesday called on the kind intervention of the Union Home Minister Amit Shah and sought a special package for the state in view of massive damage caused due to recent unprecedented floods.
The Chief Minister, who called on Amit Shah at his residence here today, said that the relief of Rs 1600 crore announced by centre was miniscule in wake of grave loss suffered by state adding he also sought upward revision in norms for awarding compensation to the flood victims from SDRF/NDRF. He apprised the Union Home Minister that Punjab has faced one of its worst floods in decades, affecting more than 20 lakh people across 2614 villages, with 6.87 lakh displaced. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the disaster has caused widespread losses as more than 4.8 lakh acres of crops destroyed, more than 17,000 houses damaged, over 2.5 lakh livestock affected and major damage to 4657 km of rural roads, 485 bridges, 1,417 culverts and 190 mandis.
The Chief Minister said that the preliminary estimate of losses stands at Rs. 13,832 crores, covering agriculture, infrastructure, health, education and livelihoods. He said that the current SDRF/NDRF norms are grossly inadequate to address the actual scale of damages adding that input subsidy where crop loss is 33% and above has been fixed as Rs 6800 per acre by the Ministry of Home Affairs. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that paying such a petty amount would be unfair to the farmers as the crops were almost at the harvesting stage, so Rs.50,000 per acre should be paid to the farmers.
The Chief Minister said that he had already flagged the issue with the Ministry adding that as no response was there so the State has enhanced the compensation at its level by contributing from the State Budget. He said that in a healing touch the flood victims the state government has decided to enhance the compensation of 26 to 33 percent crop loss to Rs 10,000 per acre from existing Rs 2000 per acre under SDRF norms, 33 to 75 percent crop loss to Rs 10,000 from existing Rs 6800 per acre and for 75 to 100 percent crop loss compensation has been increased to Rs 20,000 per acre again from existing Rs 6800.
The Chief Minister said that in the Rs 20,000 per acre compensation being given to the farmers the state government will contribute Rs 14,900 which is the highest in the country. He said that the compensation for fully damaged/ destroyed houses and severely damaged houses should be doubled from existing Rs.1.20 lakh per house in plain areas to Rs 2.40 lakh per house. Likewise, Bhagwant Singh Mann said that for partially damaged houses (other than huts) the compensation should be Rs.50,000 per house instead of existing Rs 6500 per house for pucca houses and Rs.10,000 per house instead of existing Rs 4000 per house for kutcha houses.
The Chief Minister also said that for Cattle sheds attached with house Rs 10,000 should be given as compensation instead of existing Rs 3000. He further said that Punjab has faced the worst unprecedented floods this year since 1988 and as per the initial assessment, this natural calamity has resulted in the submergence of nearly 1,900 villages, causing severe distress to the farming community. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the brunt of the calamity has been borne by the farmers, with crop damage reported on approximately 4 lakh acres of sown land.
The Chief Minister said that Gurdaspur, Amritsar, Fazilka, Kapurthala and Ferozepur are the most affected districts so relaxation may kindly be extended to the state for KMS 2025-26. He said that the Department of Food & Public Distribution (DFPD), Government of India, may relax the specifications of paddy for procurement during KMS 2025-26 as and when reported on priority. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that it is imperative to ensure that farmers do not suffer additional hardship over and above the losses already inflicted by the natural calamity.
Flagging the issue of funds for flood protection works for border infrastructure, the Chief Minister highlighted that there are places on the international border where the rivers of Ravi and Satluj cross the international boundary multiple times. He said that the rivers also tend to change their courses over a period of time and the state has been facing this problem due to the erosion by the rivers. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the State Government is making all efforts to ensure that there is least loss of land for the farmers and other infrastructure.
The Chief Minister said that every year, flood protection works are carried out at various places, however, the state Government is having inadequate funds at its disposal and it is not possible to provide adequate funds for the flood protection at the international border. He apprised the Home Minister that during the meeting held with the BSF, it has been pointed out by them that the Border Outposts manned by the BSF are under threat from the flood waters. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the Deputy Commissioners in the border districts have provided a list of the projects as collected from the BSF which needs immediate protection from the floods.
The Chief Minister said that a detailed Project Report of Rs.175.96 crore was submitted to CWC and NDMA, New Delhi to release the funds to execute the works. He said that a series of meetings have been held by the State Government with CWC and NDMA during the last one year; however, their response still remains awaited. Therefore, Bhagwant Singh Mann requested the Union Home Minister that necessary funds be released at the earliest so that works may be executed in time.
Raising the issue of pending share of Rs 11297 crore RDF and Market fees, the Chief Minister beamoned that the Rural Development Fee and Market Fees is not being reimbursed to the state government despite of clear provision to pay under section 7 of Punjab Rural Development Act, 1987 and as per Section 23 of Punjab Agriculture Produce Marketing Act, 1961. He said that the purpose of this fund is to promote the agriculture and rural infrastructure, which ultimately add to overall development of agriculture, viz. rural road network, marketing infrastructure, augmentation of storage facility, land record computerization, automation and mechanization of mandis and others. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the state government has amended the Punjab Rural Development Act, 1987 as per directions of DFPD's Government of India but RDF has not been allowed to the State Government from KMS 2021-22 onwards in-spite of compliance of all instructions of DFPD.
The Chief Minister said that since the State is facing severe financial crises due to non-reimbursement of these funds, which is adversely affecting the development and maintenance of rural infrastructure and rural economy. He urged the Home Minister that the RDF and Market fees may be reimbursed to the state in order to put the work of infrastructure development on fasttrack. Bhagwant Singh Mann also raised the issue of meagre allowance of Artiya commission in the state and said that in Punjab, the Artiya Commission is payable @ 2.5% of MSP as per provisions of the Punjab Agriculture Produce Marketing Act, 1961.
The Chief Minister said that Artiya Commission has remained unchanged since the 2019-20 procurement season and is currently capped at Rs.46.00/quintal for wheat and Rs.45.88/q quintal for paddy. He said that as per Punjab Agriculture Produce Marketing Act, 1961, Artiya Commission @ 2.5% of MSP, i.e., Rs.59.73/ quintal is payable to the Artiyas for KMS 2025-26. However, Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the Government of India has allowed the Artiya Commission @ Rs. 45.88/ quintal for paddy, which led to unrest among the Artiyas.
The Chief Minister said that the state Government has already requested the Government of India for early resolution of these issues but these issues are still pending. He said that further delay in resolution of this issue may lead to avoidable unrest or agitation among the Artiya community leading to disruption in the smooth procurement process in the State. So, Bhagwant Singh Mann urged the Union Home Minister to kindly direct the concerned authorities to finalize/revise the Artiya Commission rates at the earliest.
Raising the issue of movement of Rice and construction of covered godowns under peg scheme in the state, the Chief Minister said that Punjab has a total covered storage capacity to the tune of approximately 180 LMT, against which nearly 171 LMT food grain stocks (140 LMT rice and 31 LMT wheat) are lying stored in the covered space as of now. For the ongoing KMS 2025-26, he said that the delivery of Custom Milled Rice by millers will start in December 2025 and 117-120 LMT rice is to be delivered to the FCI till June 30, 2026. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that as of now, only 9 LMT covered space is available for receipt of rice and only 5 LMT rice has been moved from the state since the last two months, as per which only 19 LMT space will become available by December 2025 and 100 LMT space would be required by June 2026 to complete the delivery of Rice of KMS 2025-26 in time.
Accordingly, the Chief Minister said that atleast movement of 10-12 LMT rice is required every month till June, 2026 adding that in view of this, it is requested to ensure this movement of Rice, so that the milling of rice of KMS 2025-26 could be completed by June 30, 2026 in larger public interest in this Border sensitive State. He further said that Government of India had approved a capacity of 60 LMT for the creation of covered godowns under 10-year guarantee PEG Scheme in the state, to phase out open storage in a phased manner. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the rates of PEG godowns being discovered through open, competitive and fair tendering, may be accepted or alternatively a viable rate be set as the benchmark other than CWC rates to overcome the given position.
Highlighting the issue of arrangements of DAP for rabi 2025-26 for the state, the Chief Minister said that an estimated 35 lakh hectares will be under wheat cultivation, requiring approximately 5.00 lakh MT of DAP Fertilizer. Unfortunately, he said that a persistent shortage of phosphatic fertilizers, specifically DAP during this critical period is unwarranted . Bhagwant Singh Mann said that DAP is an essential input for ensuring optimum production of wheat, potato and other rabi crops.
The Chief Minister said that the state has already experienced inadequate supplies of DAP during the current kharif season, with actual deliveries falling short of allocated quantities barring the month of July. He said that Punjab is providing nearly 50% of the buffer stocks procured annually by the FCI, any drop in wheat production due to insufficient fertilizer will have serious implications for our national food security. Therefore, Bhagwant Singh Mann sought maximum allocations and timely supply of DAP and other phosphatic fertilizers to the State of Punjab during the months of August to September.
The Chief Minister further sought Union Home Minister’s intervention for immediate clearance of General Arrangement Drawing (GAD) for the proposed rail over bridge (rob) at level crossing no.62-a, Sheron distributor, Rajpura – Bathinda line, Dhuri, district Sangrur (Punjab). He said that construction of ROB has been identified as a critical infrastructure project that will not only alleviate the ongoing traffic issues but will also substantially improve road safety, ease the flow of vehicles and bolster connectivity within this important region of Punjab adding that full cost of Rs.54 crore required for the execution of this project will be entirely borne by the Government of Punjab. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the timely progression of the project is currently hindered by the pending clearance of the General Arrangement Drawing (GAD) by the Indian Railways.
Seeking forward shifting of border security fence towards international border wherever possible without compromising on national security, the Chief Minister said that as per international norms, construction can be made beyond 150 meters of Zero Line. However, he said that at some places in Punjab, the Border Security Fence is at a large distance away from the zero line, so a large chunk of farming land lies between the International Border and the existing fence. As a result, Bhagwant Singh Mann said that a large number of farmers have to go across the Border Fence to cultivate this land due to which they face huge difficulties on a daily basis.
The Chief Minister said that this increases the workload of BSF also and the Government has to pay substantial compensation to these farmers. In view of this, he requested that BSF may kindly be directed to explore the possibility of shifting the Border Fence towards International Border, wherever possible without compromising on national security. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that he has already flagged the issue with the Government of India but the matter is still pending.