In a reality check for the successive governments in Punjab claiming there has been a “crop diversification” push in the state, especially the incumbent AAP dispensation that has been appealing to farmers to adopt horticulture leaving wheat-paddy cycle, the flower growers in the state are being forced to run from pillar to post to make their voice heard.
After Covid-19 induced lockdown and floods, now the latest trouble adding to their mounting losses is the influx of cheap flowers from neighboring states including Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh among others, that too in the peak of festive season.
The PAU Flower Growers Club, an association of flower farmers in Punjab, have now written to state horticulture minister Chetan Singh Jouramajra, urging his immediate intervention. The farmers have also asked that while the government claims to be giving a push to diversification, why are they been given a single penny of compensation for losses suffered during natural calamities (floods and untimely rains) like other farmers who grow wheat and paddy.
“Punjab flower growers are facing a big challenge due to cheaper produce being brought from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan etc. Local growers are selling their produce for peanuts despite better quality. The cost of production is also higher in Punjab due to costly labour, irrigation etc whereas states like Haryana and UP offer higher subsidies, cheap labor etc due to which their farmers can afford to sell at lower rates. They are selling flowers in Punjab at lower rates which is causing problems for local farmers,” read the letter undersigned by Gurpreet Singh Shergill, president, PAU Flower Growers Club.
Read more at indianexpress.com