Belagavi: Intensifying their agitation over their demand for a hike in the procurement price of sugarcane, farmers in North Karnataka staged a blockade of highways at several points on Saturday.
The farmers staged a sit-in demonstration in front of buses at Belagavi bus stand on Saturday, while in Dharwad farmers tried to block the road.
Agitation took place in Vijayapura and Bagalkote, sources said.
In view of the intensifying agitation, Belagavi and Dharwad administration issued prohibitory orders banning blockade of highways.
The sugarcane farmers have been demanding fixation of remunerative prices for their produce and fulfilment of other demands. Their key demand is fixation of Rs 5,500 per tonne for procuring sugarcane, restoring the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) base recovery to 9.5 per cent and reviewing the Centre’s ethanol policy.
In Belagavi, sugarcane farmers called for a voluntary statewide Karnataka bandh in support of the ongoing protest.
Shashikant Guruji, honorary president of the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha and Hasiru Sene, appealed to farmers to voluntarily observe a bandh in every village, town and city across the state on Saturday in solidarity with the sugarcane growers’ agitation.
Addressing farmers at the protest venue at Gurlapur Cross on Friday evening, Guruji urged them to continue their agitation peacefully in view of the prohibitory orders issued by the Belagavi district administration.
Appealing to farmers across Karnataka to extend voluntary support to the bandh, Guruji also urged members of the Kannada film industry, including actors and actresses, to join the farmers’ movement and extend their support to what he described as a just struggle.
He said that if the film fraternity failed to stand by the farmers, the farming community should boycott cinema theatres and refrain from watching films.
He also appealed to farmers to support the bandh by withholding the sale of essential commodities, including milk and vegetables.
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