Malwa farmers hold first Lalkaar rally in Barnala; in Majha tomorrow

Thursday, 17/12/2015

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BARNALA: Eight farmer and four farm labour unions held a Lalkaar rally at the grain market here on Wednesday to protest against the “indifferent” attitude of the state government to their demands, including proper compensation for crop damage.

Protesters at the Barnala grain market during the Lalkaar rally on Wednesday.

The farmers asserted that if the government failed to pay heed to their demands, they would sit on a protest at Badal village.

Another Lalkaar rally would be held in Amritsar on December 18 representing farmers of Majha and Doaba areas.

Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ugrahan) state president Joginder Singh Ugrahan said, “We held this rally in Malwa for immediate release of adequate compensation for loss on cotton, sugarcane and basmati crops. The loss to crops was not a natural calamity but was manmade. Farmers suffered because of corruption by the agriculture minister, as also by the nexus of sugar mill owners with the government.”

“We do not trust Congress rallies they are holding to gain political mileage. If Amarinder Singh forcibly acquired our land at Dhaula village, Badal took our land at Gobindpura. It is the farmers who are lathicharged,” Ugrahan said.

Addressing the farmers, BKU (Dakaunda) state president Buta Singh Burjgill said, “The government had promised `644 crore as compensation to the farmers affected by the whitefly pest attack on their cotton crop. This amount is being distributed to those paddy farmers, having affinity to ruling party, who had not even sown cotton crops.”

“Stray animals are giving sleepless nights to farmers. Government seems to be least interested in our plight,” said Burjgill.

Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union state president Jora Singh Nasrali said, “Even the meagre compensation announced has not been disbursed to us. The government says it has yet to identify the beneficiaries. What can we expect in such a state of affairs? Not even a single labourer has been approached by the authorities concerned to assess the losses.”

“Farmers suffered due to the `33 crore spurious pesticides supply,” said Sukhdev Singh Kokari, general secretary of BKU (Ekta Ugrahan).

Deputy commissioner Gurlovleen Singh Sidhu said, “We have received guidelines only recently. We have held two meetings and are yet to identify the beneficiaries.”