Punjab to waive farm loans worth Rs 1,186 crore of landless farmers

The Punjab government will waive Rs 1,186 crore of 1.13 lakh farmers and Rs 526 crore of landless farmers in 2021-22.

The announcement comes while thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab and Haryana, are protesting for more than three months now on Delhi's borders against the three farm laws brought by the Centre in 2020.

Reading out the Capt Amarinder Singh-led Congress government's fifth budget on March 8, Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal said the state will waive the farm loans in the next phase, under crop loan waiver scheme in 2021-22. In the Budget, the state government also raised old-age pension from Rs 750 to Rs 1,500 per month. He also announced an increase in the amount under the Shagun scheme from Rs 21,000 to Rs 51,000.

Also, to mark International Women's Day, celebrated every year on March 8, the Punjab Assembly unanimously passed a resolution, saluting the indomitable spirit of women in contributing to the progress of the nation.

The resolution, moved by the chief minister, termed the day an occasion "to realistically assess where we have reached and to rededicate ourselves to providing a life of equality and dignity to every woman in the state". The chief minister underlined the government's strong and continued commitment to the empowerment of women and the girl child at every level, including the family, the workplace and the society in general.