Wrote to Mamata govt to avail PM Kisan benefits for Bengal's farmers: Tomar

Tomar also asked the agitating farmers to stop the protest and come to the discussion table

Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of blocking the PM KISAN scheme for farmers in West Bengal due to political reasons, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Friday said that he wrote a letter to Banerjee on Thursday asking her to not prevent farmers from the benefits of the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme.

The Minister also attacked the opposition for 'shooting their ideological gun' from the shoulders of farmers and harming them eventually. He asked the agitating farmers to stop the protest and come to the discussion table.

Speaking to ANI, Tomar said that Agriculture Ministry has collated data that shows 70 lakh farmers would have benefitted PM Kisan Samman Nidhi had the Mamata government participated and allowed implementation of the scheme in the state, which was also pointed out by the Prime Minister earlier on Friday.

"Except West Bengal government, every other government has accepted PM Kisan Samman Nidhi. Rs 96,000 crore have been transferred in accounts of 10.5 crore farmers," informed the minister.

Earlier today, addressing farmers after releasing an installment of PM KISAN scheme, the Prime Minister had said that Banerjee's ideology has destroyed West Bengal and questioned the silence of Opposition for her decision to not implement the scheme in the state that is in the interest of farmers.

"In West Bengal as per our estimates, there are 70 lakh farmers who are eligible for PM Kisan Samman Nidhi. These people if join the scheme, West Bengal will get Rs 4,200 crore in a year. For now, farmers of West Bengal are devoid of this benefit and that is why I have written to the CM Mamata Banerjee before and yesterday as well to join the scheme," he added.

After Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked the opposition for misleading and misusing farmers on farm laws, the Minister reaffirmed the PM statement.

"Those who have lost their ground and relevance and search for shoulders from time to time. Today, they are shooting off their ideological gun from the shoulders of farmers. I want to tell political parties, social organisations, and politicians and to those for whom farmers well being is far, they have got the opportunity they highlighted their anti-farmer character and today they are posing as farmers well-wisher and misleading them. They will be punished by the people of India very soon," added the Minister.

The Minister said that those who are protesting, govt of India's new farm laws are for farmers well being.

"These laws will make them prosper, to ensure that technology is extensively used in the field of agriculture and to ensure private investment in the field of agriculture and that is why they should leave agitation and come to the table for discussion. And if they find any problem in proposals sent, the government is ready to amend them," said the Minister.

Farmers have continued their protest at the borders of Delhi against the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.