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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Farmers march clogs airport road

Farmers march clogs airport road

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published Published on Jan 12, 2011   modified Modified on Jan 12, 2011

Farmers' protesting ban on cotton and onion exports on Monday created a few moments of panic as they set ablaze a trolley-full of cotton some 200 metres from the Nagpur airport building. The situation was soon brought under control and farmers dispersed after the symbolic protest.

Over 2000 farmers led by Bacchu Kadu, the maverick independent MLA from Achalpur in Amravati district, marched through the busy Wardha road to airport clogging traffic for more than two hours. They were protesting restrictions imposed by the government on the exports of cotton and other agriculture products, including onions, by the government. "This is just the beginning, we will now fan out to villages and organize the farmers all over Vidarbha to tell them how the government was acting against their interests," said Kadu. Farmer leaders Vijay Jawandhiya and Chandrakant Wankhede were also at the forefront of the march.

Farmers, most of them youths, affiliated to socio-political organization Prahar headed by Kadu, walked around 8 km from MLA Hostel to the airport approach road shouting slogans against the anti-farmer policies of the government. At Panchsheel square, minister for food and civil supplies and NCP leader Anil Deshmukh met the protesting leaders and assured them to take up with the government the demands for better minimum support price for cotton and lifting of exports restrictions.

"International prices of cotton this year are in the range of Rs 6000 a quintal. But the government is sticking to the old price. While it has refused to revise the cotton support price for last three years and give an advantage to the distressed cotton cultivator, it has taken several measures like importing cheaper tur dal from Myanmar to bring down its domestic prices. This has again hit farmers who had shifted to tur crop hoping for better returns and is now getting around Rs 2800 a quintal. Last year, tur retail prices in cities had scaled Rs 100 a kg mark. Thus, the state intervention is always to proving detrimental to farmers," explained Jawandhiya.

"Why should there be restrictions like export cap of 55 lakh bales and why is yarn not being allowed to be exported," he asked. "Fortunately, this year cotton prices were firm. But in a glut year, will the government act to pay a support price higher that the open market rate," wondered Jawandhiya. "If the government hurts the farmers for long, there sure will be a revolt," warned Kadu. "Officials attribute unabated farmers' suicides to drinking and spending on marriages by farmers. We have seen recently how political leaders' splurge money on sons' marriages," said Kadu referring to opulent wedding ceremonies for sons of BJP president Nitin Gadkari and revenue minister Narayan Rane. Kadu warned that the agitation will be spread to villages and the farmers will be organized against government policies.


The Times of India, 12 January, 2011, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Farmers-march-clogs-airport-road/articleshow/7262929.cms


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