Agitated over the Haryana Government’s decision not to buy sunflower seeds at the Minimum Support Price (MSP), farmers from the region blocked the Delhi-Chandigarh highway (National Highway-44) near Shahbad in Kurukshetra district on Tuesday. The highway was blocked on a call given by Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni) president Gurnam Singh Charuni as the deadline given to the government to start procurement on MSP of Rs 6,400 a quintal expired on Monday.
Amid heavy police deployment and barricading, the farmers gathered at the Shahbad grain market in the morning and decided to block the highway as their talks with the administration failed to yield any result. Led by Charuni, the farmers crossed barricades and blocked the highway by parking their tractor-trailers laden with sunflower seed.
In the absence of government agencies, the farmers alleged that they are being forced to sell their produce to private buyers at Rs 4,000 a quintal against the MSP of Rs 6,400.
On May 30, the Haryana Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department issued a notice declaring that sunflower seeds and bajra had been included in the list of crops covered under the Bhavantar Bharpai Yojana (BBY), which means that government agencies will not procure these crops on MSP but will provide Rs 1,000 a quintal to farmers for selling their produce to private buyers.
The farmers said the move will lead to a loss of Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000 per acre so they will continue their protest until the government agencies procure their produce on MSP. “We will not end this protest until the government begins procurement on MSP, even, we are ready to face police action,” said Charuni.