Vidisha (Madhya Pradesh) [India], July 6 (ANI): Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday said that the government is preparing a new, stricter law to address the problem of duplicate fertilisers and seeds.

He stated that the current law imposes only a small fine of around Rs 500, allowing offenders to escape easily.

Speaking to the reporters, Chouhan said, '...We are working on bringing a new law to tackle the issue of duplicate fertilisers, seeds... The law will be strict as the present law is not that strict, but just about a compensation of around Rs 500, and hence those who commit this get released easily.'

Earlier, Chouhan described Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee as an 'ardent' nationalist leader and noted that the tricolour is now 'flying high' in Kashmir.

'We pay our respects at the feet of the ardent nationalist leader and founder of Bharatiya Jana Sangh, Dr. Shyama Prasad Mookerjee. It was Dr Mukherjee who established Bharatiya Jana Sangh as a new political party based on Indian culture, values, and traditions, as an alternative to Congress,' Chouhan said in Bhopal in his tribute to Shyama Prasad Mookerjee on the occasion of his birthday.

Recalling Mookerjee's protest against Article 370, Chouhan said, 'The Jana Sangh proclaimed that there cannot be two flags, two constitutions, and two heads in one country... He made the supreme sacrifice, and today, by paying our respects at his feet, we feel satisfied that under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, his resolve has been fulfilled. The tricolour is now flying high in Kashmir.'

Syama Prasad Mookerjee was the founder of Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the ideological parent organisation of the BJP.

Born on July 6, 1901, in Calcutta, he was a multifaceted personality - patriot, educationist, parliamentarian, statesman, and humanitarian. He inherited a legacy of erudition and nationalism from his father, Sir Ashutosh Mookerjee, an esteemed Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University and Judge of the Calcutta High Court. (ANI)