Punjab Minister Aman Arora has strongly criticized the opposition parties, especially BJP and Akali Dal, for spreading false information about the state government’s land pooling policy. He said the policy is designed to help farmers and promote planned development in Punjab, but the opposition is trying to confuse people for political gain.
Arora explained that land pooling is not a new idea. He showed official records proving that earlier governments, including the Akali-BJP alliance, had launched similar plans. For example, the Mohali Master Plan was announced in 2008, followed by plans for Amritsar, Tarn Taran, and Hoshiarpur in the following years.
He said those areas were already marked for residential use and private builders had been allowed to build colonies. Now, when our government wants to make farmers partners in planned development, the same parties are opposing it, Arora added.
He assured that farmers have full freedom -they can either continue farming or join in developing colonies. The new policy also allows farmers to sell or buy land and provides financial support of ₹50,000 annually for three years followed by ₹1 lakh after they get ownership.
Arora also revealed that illegal colonies have already taken over 20,000 acres of land in Punjab. The government now wants to bring development in a proper and legal way. So far, 3,735 acres of land have been included in the first phase of the project.
He asked, If Mohali can be developed properly, why not the whole of Punjab? The minister said the government’s goal is to ensure development with transparency and include farmers in the progress of the state.
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