Punjab Farmers

Agriculture policy almost ready, says Punjab CM Mann amid farmers protest

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday said the state's agriculture policy is almost ready and his government will call stakeholders for further consultation. The statement came amid a protest by the Bharti Kisan Union (Ugrahan) and the Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union which are pressing for the implementation of the agriculture policy. Participating in the discussion on the concluding day of the three-day Punjab Assembly session, Mann said the agriculture policy is almost ready. "We will speak to stakeholders, (farmers) unions and organisations related to farming in this regard," he said in the state assembly. Mann said his government always supports that policies should be framed with the consultation of stakeholders, unlike the Union government which introduces its policies without applying mind and consulting the people. He cited the example of the three farm laws which were later withdrawn by the BJP-led government at the Centre after protests by the farming community. Fa

BJP distances itself from Kangana Ranaut's remarks on farmers' protest

Apart from western Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, poll-bound Haryana has been one of the centres of the farmers' protests. Polling in Haryana is scheduled for October 1

Centre's 5-crop MSP proposal: Why Punjab farmers are reluctant to diversify

As Centre proposes purchase of alternative crops at MSP, a look at why Punjab farmers are reluctant to diversify

Farmers promise peaceful protest, Centre says must continue discussions

Farmers protest latest news: Centre has estimated that nearly 14,000 people have gathered along the Punjab-Haryana border with 1,200 tractor-trolleys, 300 cars, 10 mini-buses as well as small vehicles

We had asked for MSP guarantee on purchase of pulses: Bhagwant Mann

"The discussions went on for five hours. I talked about the benefits for Punjab. We had asked for an MSP guarantee on the purchase of pulses, which was discussed today," Mann said

Farmers' protest: Internet ban extended in parts of Punjab till Feb 24

The suspension of internet services has been extended in certain areas of some Punjab districts, including Patiala, Sangrur and Fatehgarh Sahib, till February 24 on the orders of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. Earlier, the internet services were suspended from February 12 till 16 in view of the farmers' 'Delhi Chalo' march. According to the ministry's February 16 order, internet services will remain suspended in areas falling under Shambhu, Julkan, Passian, Patran, Shatrana, Samana, Ghanaur, Devigarh and Balbhera police stations in Patiala; Lalru police station in Mohali; Sangat police station in Bathinda; Killianwali police station in Muktsar; Sardulgarh and Boha police stations in Mansa; and Khanauri, Moonak, Lehra, Sunam and Chajli police stations in Sangrur; and areas under Fatehgarh Sahib police station. The Centre used its special powers under the Telegraph Act of 1885 to suspend internet services in these areas of Punjab. "In exercise of the power conferred by section 7

Farmers gear up for another round of talks after almost week of protests

The farmers have been massing at the Punjab-Haryana border since Feb. 12, prevented from marching toward Delhi by police barricades of barbed wire and metal barriers.

Farmers to stay put at Punjab-Haryana borders as deadlock persists

Protesting farmers will stay put at the two borders of Punjab and Haryana over their various demands as the deadlock persisted despite the third round of talks with a panel of Union ministers. A five-hour meeting, which started around 8:45 pm on Thursday, between three Union ministers and the farmer leaders remained inconclusive. The two sides will now meet on February 18 for the fourth round of talks. The two previous rounds of dialogue on February 8 and 12 also remained inconclusive. Union Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Minister Arjun Munda, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai represented the Centre at Thursday's meeting over the farmer unions' various demands, including a law guaranteeing a minimum support price (MSP) for crops. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema also joined the meeting at the Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration in Sector 26 here. The Samyu

MSP of wheat and paddy: How the two states Punjab and Haryana fared

Data on the number of farmers isn't comparable as no record was maintained before 2015-16

Farmers' protest: Shambhu border agitation escalates, police lathi-charge

Farmers' protest: Videos emerged on social media, showing protestors throwing barricades down from the flyover at Shambhu on the Punjab-Haryana border on Tuesday

Punjab kinnow growers stare at poor income as prices fall amid bumper yield

Unanticipated drop in kinnow rates amid a bumper yield has left growers of the fruit in Punjab staring at very poor gains. Farmers said they are getting Rs 6-10 per kg for their kinnow crop, a steep decline as compared to Rs 20-25 per kg they got last year. They rued that at the current rate, they are not able to recover their input cost, and sought from the government to fix a minimum price for the fruit crop. After two years of low yield because of unexpected high temperatures during the flowering stage of the crop, Punjab is set to achieve a bumper crop this season. Punjab, a major grower of kinnow in the country, is expected to achieve an output of 13.50 lakh metric tonne this season, as against 12 lakh MT in the last season. A total area of 47,000 hectares were brought under the kinnow crop this season. Harvesting of kinnow -- a hybrid between king and willow leaf mandarins -- starts in December and goes on till February-end in Punjab. Abohar is the leading district in the

Punjab farmers end protest, warn of 'bigger agitation' if promises not met

Farmers who had gathered at Mohali and Panchkula along Chandigarh's borders on Tuesday ended their three-day protest after their meetings with Punjab and Haryana governors, but warned the Centre of a "bigger agitation" if it does not show "seriousness" towards their pending demands. "This was a trailer," said farmer leader from Punjab, Harinder Singh Lakhowal, on the three-day protest. "A bigger agitation will be held if the government does not show seriousness towards our demands," Lakhowal told PTI. He said there are some demands which pertain to the state government which they have separately taken up with it and a meeting in this regard with the chief minister will be held on December 19. Separately, a delegation of farmers from Haryana met Governor Bandaru Dattatreya here concerning various demands. After the meeting, farmer leader Suresh Koth told reporters that they "want to give a clear warning to the government that we have and we can fight for our rights." "If the gover

SKM's 3-day protest: Farmers gather near Mohali border to take part in stir

Farmers from different parts of Punjab Sunday gathered at the Mohali-Chandigarh border under the banner of Samyukta Kisan Morcha, beginning their three-day nationwide protest for a legal guarantee of minimum support price. Heavy security arrangements were made ahead of the protest and traffic diverted to alternative routes on some roads, officials said. Farmers have been demanding the withdrawal of cases filed against them during the 2020-21 stir against the now-repealed farm laws, compensation and jobs for any one of the family members of farmers who died during the stir, debt waiver, and pension. The Samyukta Kisan Morcha is an umbrella body of various farmer unions. Farmers have announced they will march to Raj Bhavan in Chandigarh to give a memorandum of their demands to the Punjab governor. Farmers from many parts of Punjab including Ludhiana, Ferozepur, Sangrur on Sunday began gathering on the Mohali-Chandigarh border along the Phase-11 in Mohali and the IISER chowk road. T

Centre, Punjab govt negligent in stubble management: Farmers leaders

Farmer leaders in Punjab on Wednesday accused the Centre and the state government of not making proper arrangements for stubble management and said it is vehicular and industrial pollution which affects the air quality in Delhi and not farm fire. They also said the governments should guarantee minimum support price on alternative crops such as maize and pulses to wean away growers from the water-guzzling paddy crop, which is not even native to Punjab. Their remarks came a day after the Supreme Court, while hearing a matter related to stubble burning, observed farmers are being made "villains" and that they have not been heard. A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Sudhanshu Dhulia had also suggested why should there be any purchase under the minimum support price (MSP) system from farmers who indulge in crop residue burning, irrespective of the fact that citizens and children were affected due to pollution. Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) general secretary Sukhdev Singh ...

Punjab farmer bodies protest against cases lodged over stubble burning

Several farmer bodies in Punjab on Monday held protests at the offices of deputy commissioners and sub-divisional magistrates at many places, seeking withdrawal of cases registered against farmers for burning stubble. The protesting farmers, who also demanded a long-lasting solution for paddy straw, brought stubble-laden trolleys to several offices of DCs and SDMs. The call for the four-hour protest was given by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political) and 18 other farmer bodies. The agitating farmers demanded withdrawal of legal actions, including registration of FIRs and rollback of the fine imposed on farmers for burning crop residue. They also demanded an increase in sugarcane rates and a fair compensation for land acquisition under the Bharatmala projects. In Moga, a group of farmers, who were bringing stubble in tractor-trolleys, said they were stopped from entering the DC office complex for staging a 'dharna'. One of the farmers even lied in front of a police vehicle, deman

We are being targeted, defamed for Delhi air pollution, say Punjab farmers

Farmers in Punjab Tuesday said they were unnecessarily being targeted and defamed for air pollution in Delhi, asserting that industries, vehicles and the construction sector are the major sources of pollution in the national capital and not stubble burning. Paddy straw burning in Punjab and Haryana is considered a contributing factor to the spike in pollution levels in Delhi in October and November every year. Amid the recent decline in air quality in the national capital, the AAP and the BJP have blamed stubble burning in states ruled by the other for the pollution. Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema on Monday said most stubble burning incidents are being witnessed in the BJP-ruled Haryana and Uttar Pradesh whereas such cases are declining in his state. On the other hand, Haryana Agriculture Minister Jai Prakash Dalal on Saturday had slammed the Bhagwant Mann government over the stubble burning incidents in the state. Bharti Kisan Union (Ugrahan) general secretary Sukhde

Punjab farmers defy farm fire prevention, force officer to burn stubble

A group of farmers allegedly defied the orders of a farm fire prevention team, and forced an officer to set a heap of stubble on fire in Punjab's Bathinda district, drawing condemnation from Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. A purported video of the entire incident also surfaced on social media. Police have lodged an FIR in the matter after an order by Mann on Saturday. The chief minister termed the incident as an inhuman crime against the people of the state. Bathinda Deputy Commissioner Showkat Ahmad Parray had also written to the senior superintendent of police, asking him to register an FIR against the farmers for preventing the official from discharging his duty. The incident took place in Mehma Sarja village on Friday when a team led by a special supervisor went there to check stubble burning incidents. The DC said the official was surrounded by a group of 50-60 farmers with allegiance to a farmers' body, took him to a nearby field and forced him to put a heap of stubble on fire.

Punjab farmers' 'rail roko' stir enters 3rd day, train movement remains hit

The 'rail roko' stir of Punjab farmers demanding compensation for crops damaged in the recent floods, a legal guarantee on MSP and a sweeping debt waiver entered its third day on Saturday. The agitation has hit the movement of trains, with many being cancelled, short-terminated or diverted, railway officials said. The farmers have been blockading railway tracks at several places in Faridkot, Samrala, Moga, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, Tarn Taran, Sangrur, Patiala, Ferozepur, Bathinda and Amritsar since Thursday as part of their three-day agitation. The protest has left hundreds of rail passengers stranded in Punjab and Haryana. A railway passenger at Ludhiana station said he arrived from Jalandhar City by road to take a train to Gorakhpur but there is no information on when it will arrive. Another passenger at the station said the agitation forced the cancellation of a train from Amritsar in which 12 of his family members were supposed to travel to Bihar. They later learned

Farmers' stir in Punjab: Trains hit; farmers block Chandigarh-Ambala NH

Farmers in large numbers squatted on rail tracks in parts of Punjab on Friday, while another group of cultivators blocked the Chandigarh-Ambala national highway as part of their stir to demand a financial package for losses incurred in floods, a legal guarantee to MSP and a sweeping debt waiver. As part of the three-day 'rail roko' protest, farmers squatted on the Amritsar-Delhi railway track in Devidas Pura, while in Hoshiarpur, members of the Azad Kisan Committee, Doaba, sat on dharna at the local railway station. According to railway officials, while some trains were cancelled, routes of several trains have been diverted. Some trains are being short terminated in view of the agitation. The stir is underway at 17 places in Punjab, including in Moga, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, Tarn Taran, Sangrur, Patiala, Ferozepur, Bathinda, and Amritsar. A group of farmers owing allegiance to BKU (Sidhupur) also squatted on the Chandigarh-Ambala national highway near Lalru in Punjab. ...

Punjab farmers continue three-day 'rail roko' agitation over MSP demand

Due to the protest, several trains on the Ambala-Shri Ganganagar route were cancelled on Thursday