Chandigarh: The motorists travelling on the Delhi-Chandigarh National Highway (NH-44, also called GT road) underwent harrowing times for hours after a large number of farmers from Haryana and bordering states of Punjab and Uttar Pradesh (UP) blocked the NH at Kurukshetra around 2 pm demanding minimum support price (MSP) for sunflower seeds.
Prior to descending upon the NH, the farmers first held their mahapanchayat (gathering) at Pipli grain market in Kurukshetra district.
Even though the Haryana police had made diversions and regulated the traffic, its movement came to a standstill on the Kurukshetra stretch of the NH for hours after farmers blocked it by placing dozens of tractors and other vehicles diagonally there.
Traffic diverted
The traffic coming from Delhi was diverted near Sector 3 at Kurukshetra making the motorists travel via Kurukshetra University Gate number 3, Brahma Sarovar, and to take NH-152D to get on Umri road before getting back to Shahbad on the national highway (NH-44).
Likewise, the motorists going from Chandigarh towards Delhi were diverted before Aman Hotel flyover for Saha Road and travel via Dosarka, Adhoya, Ladwa, Indri in Karnal to get back on the national highway (NH-44). Another diversion was made from near Shahbad via Ladwa road towards Karnal that comes after Kurukshetra.
Even though the Kurukshetra Deputy Commissioner Shantanu Sharma and other senior officials of the district administration reached the spot for talks with the farmers, the agitation continued and the blockade was yet to be lifted till the time of filing this report.
Farmers demand release of leaders
Earlier, several farmer leaders including Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait addressed the gathering. Tikait demanded that the government procure sunflower seeds on MSP and also release farmer leaders who were recently arrested in Shahbad. Another leader Karam Singh Mathana said that the stir would continue till the demands for the MSP were not met.
Meanwhile, it may be recalled that Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had announced an interim relief to the protesting farmers on Saturday.
While the state government had offered ₹1,000 per quintal as interim support for sunflower crop sold below the MSP, the farmers maintained that they were being forced to sell their crop to private buyers at ₹4,000 per quintal. Since Haryana government agency Hafed is currently procuring sunflower seeds crop at an MSP of ₹4,800, the farmers demand the state government procured the entire crop that too at an MSP of ₹6,400 per quintal.
It may be recalled that the Haryana police had also resorted to lathicharge on the agitating farmers in Shahbad (district Kurukshhetra) when they had blocked the NH-44 on June 6. The police had also arrested nine leaders including BKU (Charuni) president Gurnam Singh Charuni on various charges including rioting, unlawful assembly and disrupting officials in their duty.
Bajrang Punia joins in
Meanwhile, significantly enough, Bajrang Punia, one of the top wrestlers currently protesting against the WFI chief Brij Bhushan Singh, also participated in the farmers mahapanchayat at Kurukshetra.
