The Punjab government, led by Bhagwant Maan, is fully committed to providing quality wheat seed to the farmers in the state. Agriculture Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal met with Agriculture Department and PUNSEED officials on Tuesday to review the Department of Agriculture and PUNSEED's preparations to provide quality wheat seed to farmers during the upcoming season.
Mohinder Singh Sidhu, Chairman of PUNSEED, and Sarvjit Singh, Additional Chief Secretary of Agriculture Department, were also present at the meeting. Agriculture Minister Dhaliwal after the meeting said that a major decision was made to change the old system of providing wheat seed subsidies in order to provide significant relief to farmers.
Dhaliwal added that the benefit of the Punjab government's subsidy on the wheat seed will now be given to farmers on the spot at the time of seed purchase by lowering the price.
He told the media that previously, in order to benefit from the wheat seed subsidy, farmers had to go through a lengthy process in which they had to register online after receiving verification from the Lambardar/Sarpanch.
The Agriculture Minister stated that the Bhagwant Maan government has provided this relief to farmers in order to relieve them of unnecessary paperwork and the online system. On this occasion, Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal directed PUNSEED officials to work with the National Seed Corporation to purchase high-quality wheat seed and distribute it to farmers.
He also chastised private seed sellers, stating that the Punjab Government will not compromise on wheat seed quality, and that only high-quality seed will be allowed to be sold in the market. He also stated that if anyone tries to sell substandard seeds to farmers, the government will take harsh action.
