Centre making all efforts to bring back youths from Iraq: Parkash Singh Badal

MUKTSAR: Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today said that the NDA government at the Centre would make all efforts at various diplomatic levels to ensure safe home coming of the Punjabi youths abducted in Iraq.

I had met Union External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj along with the family members of the abducted youth in New Delhi on Thursday and she had given assurance for the safe home coming of all the Punjabi youths stranded in Iraq, Badal told reporters here.

He was addressing the reporters on sidelines of a series of rallies organised in the Lambi assembly constituency to express gratitude to the people for electing Harsimrat Kaur Badal as their representative in the recently concluded parliamentary elections.

The Punjab Government today submitted a detailed report of more than 200 Punjabis stranded in strife torn Iraq to the External Affairs Ministry.

Till today evening more than 200 families had contacted the control room for giving details about their relatives. Yesterday around 50 Punjabi families had approached the control room.

Addressing the rally, Badal had said that to boost the vegetable and fruit production in the state, the Punjab government had already established a juice processing unit in Abohar and now after its successful operation it has decided to double its capacity.

He said that it would enhance the profitability of vegetables and fruit growers of the state especially the Kinow growers in this area.

Replying to another query, Badal said that the state government had initiated a project to tackle the menace of water logging in the south-west districts of the state.

With the completion of this project, the problem of water logging would be completely eradicated, claimed Badal.

Badal also urged the people to join hands with the state government in its anti-drug campaign to make Punjab a drug free state.

The state government was fully committed to provide all types of help to the addicts for their detoxification treatment and rehabilitation, he said.