Farmers start 3-day protest, seeking quashing of stubble burning FIRs

Protests have also began at Mansa, Muktsar, Moga and Faridkot under BKU (Ekta Ugrahan)

Sangrur/Bathinda Over 100 members of Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Ugrahan started a three-day protest opposite the district administrative complex, seeking cancellation of FIRs lodged against farmers for stubble burning on Monday. Protests have also began at Mansa, Muktsar, Moga and Faridkot under BKU (Ekta Ugrahan). Raising slogans against the Congress government, farmers claimed that police had booked them falsely under government’s pressure.

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“The state government has failed to provide an alternative to burning of paddy residue, due to this farmers were forced to burn stubble. Owners of combine harvesters have been slapped with ₹2 lakh fine for operating without a Super Straw Management System (SMS); this is something they cannot pay,” said Joginder Singh, state president of BKU Ugrahan.

“Farmers adopted direct sowing that agriculture experts had recommended, without the burning of paddy stubble. However, worms have damaged the wheat crop now. We demand that all false cases should be quashed and farmers should be provided financial aid to manage paddy residue,” he added.

In Bathinda, BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) leader Shingara Singh Mann said farmers had to resort to burning paddy stubble in fields due to the cost factor. “The government should provide ₹200 per quintal bonus or free machinery to farmers to manage stubble without burning. When harvesting was its last stage, the government announced ₹100 per quintal bonus for farmers who didn’t burn stubble in their fields, which is not sufficient. Even this has not been given to all eligible farmers,” he claimed.