Road blockades in Bankura demanding fair price for potato

Road blockades were erected at four places in Bankura district today by CPI(M)'s peasant wing demanding fair price for potato.
Kisan Sabha members put up blockades at Dhaldanga More, Poabagan, Heavy More and Salboni areas here since 9 am.
While superintendent of police S K Neelkanta said the blockades were "peacefully" lifted at around 11 am, the protestors said that four of their supporters were injured in police action.
Their demands include a fair price of Rs 500 per quintal of tuber, 100 days of assured work per year, compensation for the families of potato farmers who committed suicide and those whose property was damaged in elephant attack.

Potato production in the state is in excess of 110 lakh tonnes, up by around 15 per cent over last year due to higher acreage and conducive climate.
State Agriculture Minister Purnendu Bose had said rencently that the government is keeping an eye on the situation arising out of surplus potatao output in the state which has left farmers worried.
The price of potato would not have crashed to Rs 150 a bag against the production cost of Rs 450 had demand from other states remained bouyant, he had said.
The government has created a Rs 10 crore corpus for transport subsidy for potato farmers for exporting tuber by both ships and railway rakes besides, procuring it from farmers at Rs 5 a kg for direct retailing in 20-odd state-owned Sufal stores in and around the city at Rs 7 per kg.