Hundreds of peanut farmers from five blocks here under the banner of Naba Nirmana Krushak Sangathan on Wednesday blocked the National Highway (5) at Chandikhol square accusing the State Agriculture department of distributing poor quality peanut seeds leading to crop failure and demanded compensation for the crop loss.
Vehicular traffic came to a grinding halt for one and a half hours due to the blockade on the road.
The agitators demanded compensation of Rs20,000 for each acre of crop loss, waiver of outstanding loans and disbursement of new loans to the affected farmers. Police restored normalcy after arresting the farmers. later, the farmers were released on PR bonds. Meanwhile, farmers of Megha and Katakiasahi gram panchayats in Athagarh sub-division of Cuttack district have also alleged that the seeds of peanuts purchased from the Megha and Rajnagar cooperative societies and cultivated by them have not germinated in time.
Talking to this correspondent, a leading farmer, Indrajit Pradhan, said that they have been supplied seeds of poor quality for which there are no seedlings as yet.
He demanded a departmental inquiry into the issue and also sought compensation to the victim farmers.