Punjab: Amarinder Singh govt seeks Rs 20,683 crore from Centre for wheat procurement

Chandigarh: The Punjab cabinet on Monday decided to take up on a priority basis the matter of settlement of legacy accounts regarding the pending cash credit limit (CCL) with the Centre, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and State Bank of India (SBI).

A decision to this effect was taken here at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh.

The meeting decided to take up the CCL issue with the central government, RBI and SBI “in larger public interest and in view of the state’s financial situation”.

After the meeting, an official spokesperson said the Punjab government, which has “inherited a huge debt legacy” from the previous Akali government, will actively pursue the issue with the Centre.

The chief minister had last week met Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitely and demanded that the Centre immediately authorise and release Rs 20,683 crore cash credit limit for smooth and timely wheat procurement in the state.

The procurement of wheat in the state is slated to commence on 1 April.

The state cabinet also approved supplementary grants for the year 2016-17 to be presented before the state assembly during the ongoing session.

It also cleared the proposal for seeking Vote-on-Account for 2017-18 in the Vidhan Sabha.

The supplementary grants and Vote-on-Account are scheduled to be presented in the House on 29 March.