Punjab govt failed to procure moong at MSP: Badal

Chandigarh, Jul 7 (PTI) Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Tuesday accused the Punjab government of failing to procure moong at the minimum support price and alleged that farmers had been left at the mercy of private traders. In a statement, Badal asked Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann why the government had "forsaken" moong growers despite its promise to procure the crop at the MSP. He also alleged that state procurement agencies had not entered the market, forcing farmers to sell their produce to private buyers at rates ranging between Rs 6,500 and Rs 7,000 per quintal against the MSP of Rs 8,780 per quintal. Claiming that this was the fourth consecutive season in which moong growers had been let down, he said Mann had encouraged farmers to cultivate moong in 2022 and assured them that the entire crop would be procured at MSP. According to the SAD chief, state agencies purchased only around one per cent of the crop brought to mandis in 2022, the procurement fell to below one per cent in 2023, and no procurement had been carried out by state agencies since the 2024 season. Badal alleged that the government's approach was discouraging cultivation of moong, a crop that could improve farmers' incomes and also help in nitrogen fixation in the soil. He said farmers required government support to grow moong as the crop remained vulnerable to unseasonal rains and diseases, adding that those who acted on the chief minister's assurances should be encouraged rather than penalised. Badal also said SAD would ensure procurement of moong at MSP if it formed the government in Punjab after the 2027 assembly elections. PTI VSD KVK KVK