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.
In a letter, he apprised the Governor that post of Senior Superintendent of Police in Chandigarh has traditionally been occupied by a Punjab-cadre IPS oficer, while an IAS officer of Haryana cadre had been appointed as the Deputy Commissioner.
The accused is Sunny Dilip Lal Sharma alias Manav Govind. While he had secured an identity in the name of Manav Govind to smuggle gold this time, it was revealed that he had been using six different identities. The DRI team recovered 862 grams of gold worth Rs 46 lakh from him. He was later handed over to the Gomti Nagar police.
As for these 2,100 posts, every year around 2.50 lakh candidates are expected to apply for these posts so all the aspirants will get involved in academics as well as in improving their physique for clearing the tests.
Raising the issues pertaining to farmers during Zero Hour in Lok Sabha, Congress MP from Patiala Preneet Kaur and Shiromani Akali Dal MP from Bhatinda, Harsimrat Kaur Badal demanded that all cases lodged against farmers, which were made against them during their year-long agitation, should be taken back.
The NIA arrested Md. Shahbaz Ansari alias Shezad in the case pertaining to a conspiracy hatched by members of criminal syndicate based in India and abroad, to raise funds and recruit youth to carry out terrorist acts in the different parts of the country.
Poonawalla, who killed his live-in partner Shraddha on May 18 and then chopped her body into 35 pieces, is currently lodged in Tihar Jail. On November 26, he was sent to a 13-day judicial custody by the court.
