Chandigarh, March 31 (IANS) The Punjab Cabinet led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday gave nod for hiking the compensation due to unseasonal rains by 25 per cent per acre.
A decision to this effect was taken by the Council of Ministers at its meeting held here.
A spokesperson for the Chief Minister's Office said keeping in view the loss incurred by the farmers due to rains, the Cabinet decided to enhance the relief amount from Rs 12,000 per acre to Rs 15,000 per acre for 76-100 per cent for loss of crops.
This measure will give a healing touch to the affected farmers who will be able to get a reasonable financial relief from the government. These relief rates will be applicable from March 1.
Keeping in view the larger public interest, the Cabinet also gave its consent to extend the exemption of 2.25 per cent stamp duty and fees to those registering their property or land by April 30.
Those opting for registration of land will now be exempted from one per cent additional stamp duty, one per cent PIDB fees and 0.25 per cent special fees.
It also gave approval for hiring 2,574 Kisan Mitras and 108 field supervisors in the Agriculture Department.
These Kisan Mitras and field supervisors will encourage the farmers to get out of the rut of wheat and paddy circle and cultivate less water guzzling crops like cotton and basmati.
This step will act as a catalyst to save groundwater by boosting crop diversification programme on one hand and providing employment to the youth of the state on the other.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday declared a cash reward of Rs 15 lakh on the head of Canada-based terrorist Lakhbir Singh Sandhu alias Landa, a prime accused in connection with the rocket launcher attack on Punjab Police Intelligence Headquarters in Mohali in May last year.
The personal search of the passenger resulted in recovery of two strips wrapped with white adhesive tape containing brown coloured paste in a transparent packing. He was hiding it in his underwear. After the extraction procedure four uneven rectangular shaped gold pieces collectively weighing 1760 grams worth Rs 90,29,680 were recovered.
The Telangana government has constructed small dams in villages for conserving the groundwater across the state, and he said as a result of this, the groundwater level has increased up to two metres in the villages.
The Chief Minister envisioned that the summit will go a long way in ensuring holistic industrial development of the state to propel it into the orbit of high growth trajectory. He asked Invest Punjab to make optimum use of this healthy platform to project Punjab as the preferred investment destination among the domestic and global investors.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Badal on Wednesday said it was condemnable that Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann was asserting that the Governor could not ask him any questions because he was "selected" and not "elected", but was allowing AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal to run the affairs of Punjab.
An aide of jailed gangster Jagdeep Singh, alias Jaggu Bhagwanpuria, was held with 1 kg heroin and Rs 27 lakh drug money in raids across the state at suspected hideouts of persons linked with him, Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav said on Wednesday.
