IF THE WILL OF BJP PREVAILS THEN THEY WILL OMIT THE NAME OF PUNJAB FROM THE NATIONAL ANTHEM- SAYS PUNJAB CM MANN

The Voice of Chandigarh :

Asserting that BJP government at centre was suffering from anti-Punjab mindset, Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Tuesday slammed the Union government for meting out step motherly treatment to the state.

Taking part in the debate on floor of Punjab Vidhan Sabha, the Chief Minister said that it is surprising to note that though Punjab leads the country in contribution to the food pool besides giving maximum representation in the Indian Army but it is sad to note that the centre has always ignored the state. He said that Punjab is not getting its legitimate share of RDF despite of fulfilling all the conditions. Likewise, Bhagwant Singh Mann said that though the state collects the GST and gives it to the centre but then it has to beg for its share from the Union government.

The Chief Minister said that the Modi government is suffering from anti-Punjab syndrome due to which they are hell bent on ruining the state. He said that if the will of BJP led NDA government prevails then they will omit the name of Punjab from the national anthem also. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that it is surprising that despite of this step motherly treatment the state BJP chief along with the former Chief Minister of state are mum on the entire issue.

The Chief Minister said that not only this the Union government is adopting hostile attitude towards the state and its farmers. He said that already due to the apathy of Union government the agriculture is no longer a profitable venture but now the centre is trying to abolish the MSP on the food grains. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that apart from it the Union government is putting the entire onus of environmental pollution in national capital on the farmers of the state by asserting that they are burning the paddy straw.

The Chief Minister said that the BJP is treating Punjab as if it was not a part of the country thereby ignoring the immense contribution of Punjabis in national building. He said that the rights of the state are being blatantly ignored and the central agencies are being misused for arm twisting the opposition ruled state especially Punjab. Bhagwant Singh Mann urged the Punjabis to stop looking towards the centre and come forward for saving our rich Legacy, finances, tradition and house adding that it will go a long way in carving out a Rangla Punjab.

The Chief Minister said that the GST bill presented in the house today will go a long way in ensuring that the benefits of tax are given to the manufacturing state which have used its resources to produce the goods. He said that the state government has already launched a OTS scheme for VAT to benefit more than 65000 traders across the state. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that the state government has got 1800 applications so far under this scheme, which was getting maximum response from the general public.

The Chief Minister said that the state is introducing the Artificial Intelligence in GST collection to check the bogus billing. He said that similarly Artificial Intelligence is also being introduced in departments like Revenue, Health, Agriculture, PWD and others. Citing the benefits of the technique, Bhagwant Singh Mann said that due to its usage the state government has saved Rs 163.26 crore merely in estimates of road adding that 540 kilometres of roads that do not exist have also been detected.

The Chief Minister said that the state government is spending the money collected from the people for their benefit only. He said that the people’s money is being spend on giving them free power, free medicines in AAm Aadmi Clinics, free education and others. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that there is no dearth of funds with the state government and every penny will be spent for the welfare of general public.

The Chief Minister said that the decision of the Apex court regarding the Vidhan Sabha Sessions in the state has set a new benchmark in the polity of the country. He said that this decision has set an example for the entire country in dealing with such matters. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that it was not a matter of victory or defeat but the Punjab government had fought the battle for the interests of the people and democracy.

The Chief Minister profusely thanked the Governor for according sanction to the session and replying to the letters immediately. He also expressed hope that the Governor will also clear the pending bills soon besides giving approval to the new bills. Bhagwant Singh Mann said that there is no rift between the state government and Governor on any issue.