Punjab asks Centre to set up panel to review `31k cr debt

Wednesday, 23/08/2017

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New Delhi/Chandigarh : Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Tuesday called upon Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Ram Vilas Paswan, to seek Central support in settling the unsustainable debt burden of Rs 31,000 crore and requested a review committee to examine the matter afresh.

The Union minister agreed to consider the suggestion, while also accepting a request from the Chief Minister to allow higher user charges in lieu of depreciation of once-used gunny bags for the forthcoming Kharif season in Punjab. The Union Minister assured Captain Amarinder that the necessary orders for this would be issued this week.

While Captain Amarinder described the meeting as fruitful, Paswan said Secretaries of both the sides will take the discussions forward. All the issues were being amicably resolved, the Union Minister told mediapersons after the meeting.

Since the Rs 31,000 crore debt issue related to the Finance Ministry, his ministry could only examine the matter and make suitable recommendations to Finance, as suggested by Captain Amarinder, the Union Minister explained. There was some confusion over the findings of the Jha committee, which was set up by the central government in April 2016 to examine the Punjab government’s claim of Rs 20,000 crore in foodgrain dues, said Paswan, adding that the Chief Minister had therefore suggested setting up of another committee to look into the entire issue again.

Captain Amarinder, who also sought from the Union Minister reimbursement to the state for losses incurred in procurement operations for the Central Pool, said his government wanted to be fully prepared for the Kharif season, which was expected to yield a good 18.2 million tonnes of rice.

The Chief Minister assured smooth and streamlined procurement of Kharif in September just as the wheat procurement had been handled smoothly, without any problems this time. Barring south Punjab, the state had good rainfall and was gearing up to ensure that the procurement is done in a timely manner, with the farmers not facing any problems, he told mediapersons.

Earlier, during the meeting, the Chief Minister pointed out that the Rs 31,000 crore debt, which includes an interest component of Rs 18,500 crore, had arisen due to difference in actual cost and provisional/ final cost approved by Government of India as a result of non-rationalization of Principles of Procurement Incidentals (PPIs). He further said in a formal letter to the Union Minister that despite repeated assurances from the central government, no progress had been made so far in resolving the issue.

Captain Amarinder said the state had continued to carry out procurement operations despite these gaps, in view of the National Food Security and the unrest that could spread among the farmers if the procurement of wheat and paddy was not carried out.

According to an official spokesperson, Captain Amarinder further observed that failure to resolve the issue ahead of the procurement season had forced the state government to to convert the whopping gap of Rs 29,919.96 crore (as on March 31, this year) into a clean term loan. As a result, the Government of Punjab has been burdened with an onerous unsustainable debt burden with an annual debt-servicing liability of Rs 3,240 crore for the next twenty years.

The Chief Minister urged the Union Minister to ensure that the matter is looked into afresh and proportionate burden is shared by all in a just and fair manner in the interest of the food security of the nation.