Punjab: Farmers To Be Allowed To Mine, Sell Sand From Their Flood-Hit Fields

Chandigarh: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab has decided to soon announce a policy allowing farmers to mine and sell the sand deposited in their fields by the recent floods.

Briefing newspersons in this regard, Punjab affairs in-charge Manish Sisodia said on Sunday that the AAP government would be announcing a policy in this regard in the next two or three days.

The development comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s September 9 visit to Punjab to assess flood damage and announce relief for the flood-affected people.

Sisodia said that the government has consistently been working on the ground since the flood situation arose. The farmers are worried not just the crops which have already been damaged but also about the next kharif season as the sand which has come with flood waters have accumulated in their fields. In numerous areas, sand layers are over two feet high, he said.

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Since the government policies do not allow mining without permission Mann government is likely to announce the policy allowing farmers to extract and sell the sand to remove it from their fields, he added.

While Sisodia was informed about this concern by farmers during his visits to flood-hit areas in Gurdaspur and Tarn Taran, chief minister Mann, who is currently running fever and is in hospital, had also been given a similar feedback.