Farmers Movement Archive

Karnal highway blocked over tardy paddy lifting

Infuriated over slow procurement of paddy in the Karnal grain market, farmers locked the main gate and blocked the National Highway-44 for around an hour, leading to a traffic jam.They lifted the dharna after the authorities gave assurance of a smooth procurement.Protest scheduling system in AmbalaAmbala: Unhappy with the scheduling system for paddy purchase, a group of farmers staged a dharna in front of the market committee office at the city grain market and threatened to lock its gate if their demand was not met. Gulab Singh, BKU (Charuni) district vice-president, said, “I got a text to bring my crop on Nov 1, while it’s already mature. We should be allowed to bring the produce as per our convenience.” TNSAs per the authorities, high moisture content in grain is the main reason behind slow procurement even as the arrival of paddy is in full swing which led to space crunch.Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav and Superintendent of Police Ganga Ram Punia held a meeting with farmers, arhtiyas and rice millers, after which the farmers were pacified and the procurement was started.On the second day of the procurement, farmers reached grain markets in large numbers. In the Karnal grain market, farmers did not find space, following which long queues of tractor-trailers loaded with paddy were seen on the NH-44.“We are not finding any space to unload our produce. The government had promised to start procurement from October 3, but on the second day, nothing was done,” said Ramesh Kumar, a farmer.Non-scheduled farmers alleged they were not given gate passes. Rajiv, a farmer, said the weather was not good so he could not hold crops in fields.“I have held a meeting with farmers, rice millers and commission agents. All issues have been resolved. The gate passes will be issued from 5 am to 9 pm daily,” said DC Yadav. “I appeal to farmers to bring their crops as per schedule for hassle-free procurement,” he said.Farmers also blocked the Kaithal-Jind road outside the grain market in Kaithal over slow procurement. After the assurance of smooth procurement by the authorities, they lifted the blockade. — TNS

The Tribune

2021-10-05

Karnal