Capt to meet Niti chief tomorrow

Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, August 21

Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh will be in Delhi on Friday to meet the chairmen of the Niti Aayog and 15th Finance Commission in connection with the the settlement of Rs 31,000-crore food loan account.

In February, the Finance Commission had notified the committee to examine and resolve the food account. The state has been seeking early resolution of the issue related to the legacy debt of Rs 30,584 crore, which was threatening to cascade into a major financial crisis for the state.

During the Commission’s visit to Chandigarh in January, the state had brought to its notice the seriousness of the potential outcome of the legacy debt, triggered by accumulated cash credit limit (CCL) gap in a span of more than a decade related to procurement of foodgrain for the Central pool in Punjab.