Narendra Modi to address rally in Punjab today to mark 'unprecedented' hike in MSP, says Sukhbir Singh Badal

Chandigarh: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will preside over a ’thanksgiving’ rally at Malout in Muktsar district to mark the “unprecedented” increase in minimum support price of kharif crops. The event was announced by Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday. [caption id=“attachment_4687511” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Reuters[/caption] The rally is being organised jointly by the SAD and the BJP, he said in a statement. The SAD president held a meeting of party legislators and district presidents at the head office in connection with the preparation of rally. He said farmers from Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan will attend this rally. Sukhbir said the party rank and file as well as the farmers of Punjab were waiting anxiously to give a rousing welcome to the prime minister for his “bold and decisive” step to “implement the Swaminathan Commission report” which called for 50 percent profit on input cost. The former deputy chief minister said the rally will also witness attendance of thousands of farmers from the two neighbouring states. “We are confident this will be a historic occasion on which the entire farming community will come together on one platform to thank Narendra Modi for the largesse extended to the farming community,” said Sukhbir. Sukhbir also asked Chief Minister Amarinder Singh not to “play politics” over the “historic” increase in the MSP of paddy and other crops and acknowledge the benefit given to farmers. Sukhbir said farmers would accrue an additional revenue of Rs 4,500 per acre due to the MSP hike in this season alone. He said the state agricultural marketing board would net additional revenue of around Rs 200 crore by way of market fee and rural development fund. The SAD chief claimed that all these facts proved that the recent hike in MSP would boost Punjab’s economy. He said that besides paddy, farmers growing cotton would get an additional income of around Rs 10,000 per acre.