Phagwara, Punjab: Farmers under the banner of Bharti Kisan Union (Doaba) locked the gates of a sugar mill in protest against the delay in the payment of ₹42 crore of dues to sugarcane growers, reported Hindustan Times.
The farmers also started an indefinite sit-in protest in front of the gate of the mill situated on the Ludhiana-Jalandhar national highway.
Manjit Singh Rai, the president of BKU (D), expressed frustration at the situation, highlighting that despite numerous appeals made to the Kapurthala deputy commissioner and other high-ranking officials, the outstanding payments have yet to be settled. Rai asserted, “No substantial endeavors have been undertaken to compel the mill management to fulfill their financial obligations. Our protest shall persist until the farmers receive their rightful dues.”
Satnam Singh Sahni, the general secretary of the organization, leveled criticism at the district administration, accusing them of procrastinating about the auction of the mill owners’ assets.
Kapurthala’s Deputy Commissioner stated that Punjab’s Agriculture Minister, Gurmeet Singh Khuddian, has summoned a group of sugarcane farmers for a meeting on Thursday to address this matter.
