Agitating farmers staged demonstrations in four districts of Odisha today demanding pension, remunerative prices for their produce and adequate compensation for drought among other things.
The demonstrations, organised under the banner of Nabanirman Krushak Sangathan (NKS), were held at the offices of the Collectors of Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Dhenkanal and Jajpur districts.
The agitation remained peaceful without any untoward incident, but several demonstrators were taken into custody at some places as a precautionary measure, the police said.
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Members of the NKS locked the main gate the District Collector's office in Jagatsinghpur and staged a sit-in to press their demand, said NKS leader Laxmidhar Swain, who led the demonstration.
The state government should announce pension for the farmers without further delay and admit occurrence of suicide by peasants in the state, he said.
NKS has been demanding pension for peasants, compensation to families of farmers who committed suicide, higher minimum support price, social recognition, proper irrigation and cold storage facilities among other things.
NKS leaders threatened to intensify their agitation if the state government failed to initiate concrete steps to fulfil their demands.
