Farmers demand immediate procurement of wheat

In a fresh standoff with the government, hundreds of farmers at Haryana’s Karnal grain market are demanding immediate procurement of wheat. The farmers alleged that most of them were not sent SMSs inviting them for procurement of wheat harvest, resulting in a costly delay.

District officials said SMSs were being sent to farmers as harvesting was yet to pick pace and their moisture content in wheat was also high at the moment. Some officials, from Haryana’s food and civil supplies department, told HT that the government may relax the criteria to allow 50% farmers to visit Mandi as per the schedule sent by SMS, while 30% will be called by the commissioner agents and the remaining 20% farmers would be allowed to walk in to the Mandi with their produce.

The Bharatiya Kisan Union (Charuni) accused the government of deliberately delaying procurement, and demanded that all wheat being brought to the Mandi was immediately procured irrespective of the SMS criteria.

Jadgip Singh Aulakh, a local BKU leader, said the government wants to delay the procurement. “That is why they did not send SMSs to the farmers registered on the Meri Fasal Mera Bayora (My crop my detail) portal.” Aulakh said the government agencies were turning away from farmers, who had lined-up with their produce, saying they did not have the SMS confirming an appointment for procurement at the Mandi.

A farmer, from Bijna village in the Karnal district, told HT that their crop was ready to harvest but they did not get any SMS to bring it to the Mandi. “I brought wheat produce from three acre of land to the Karnal grain market but was not allowed to enter for hours,” he alleged.

The protesting farmers have unloaded their wheat outside the office of the Mandi secretary and will stage a sit-in till procurement of their produce begins. The farmer union leaders are demanding that all the wheat arriving at the Mandi is procured at the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 1,975 per quintal.

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In an effort to break this deadlock, the Karnal deputy commissioner Nishant Yadav ordered a meeting of procurement agencies and Mandi officials.