Farmers lift blockade after government agrees for immediate paddy procurement

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“We had talks with the district administration & they’ve ensured that paddy procurement will start immediately. As our demands have been met, we have decided to lift the blockade on the road”, said Gurnam Singh Chaduni, the president of Bhartiya Kisan Union.

It is worth noting that more than 700 farmers joined the protest to block the highway from Friday for their demand for an immediate beginning of paddy procurement.

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Along with immediate paddy procurement, farmers also demanded a hike in calculating paddy yield per acre from 22 quintals to 30 quintals for procurement.

The demand for an increase in paddy yield was met the same day. The government had agreed to calculate the paddy yield per acre as 28 quintals instead of 22 quintals at present. As there was no assurance on paddy procurement by the government, the farmers continued their protest.

The protest turned chaotic when some protesting farmers jumped over police barricades put up on the road. Blockades on the national highway caused a huge problem for the daily commuters due to long traffic jams. Many of them remained stranded on the road for hours. Later the vehicles were diverted from Pipli to Chandigarh via Pehowa and Ladwa.

Gurnam Singh Chaduni, leading the protest had assured of a peaceful protest but warned of things going out of control if police resorted to lathi charges or tear gas. Luckily, the protest was called-off the next day only, as the district administration held a meeting with the farmers and also announced to take a farmer’s delegation to Chandigarh for further discussions with senior government officials.

(With agency inputs)

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