Chandigarh, June 7 A day after the police baton-charged and used water cannon to get protesting farmers evicted from the national highway 44 connecting Chandigarh with Delhi, farmers owing allegiance with the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Chaduni) on Wednesday staged a sit-in protest for a second day against the arrest of leaders.
The farmers, mainly sunflower growers, have been staging a protest at Shahabad near Kurukshetra in support of the detained leaders, comprising Gurnam Singh Chaduni.
Hundreds of farmers on Tuesday blocked the national highway at Shahabad demanding the state government to withdraw its decision to procure sunflower seeds under the Bhavantar Bharpai Yojana.
Addressing the farmers at the protest site, Chaduni had said the government should immediately begin the procurement process at the MSP of Rs 6,400 per quintal.
"At our meetings with government representatives, we had made it clear to them that the growers will not accept anything less than the MSP. We were assured that the sunflower crop will not be procured under the government's Bhavantar Bharpai Yojana," he had told the media at the protest site.
Agitated over the government's decision by including the crop under the Bhavantar Bharpai Yojana, sunflower farmers had previously given an ultimatum to the government till this day (June 6) to withdraw the decision and begin procurement on the MSP.
The BJP-led state government had decided to stop the procurement of sunflower seed on the MSP and to procure it under the Bhavantar Bharpai Yojana at the rate of Rs 1,000 per quintal.
The farmers have been saying that they are selling the produce at Rs 4,000 per quintal to private buyers against the MSP of Rs 6,400.
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