BKU mahapanchayat in Lko: Cane price hike, pending dues dominate demands

Kisan union raises concerns over rising cultivation costs, inadequate crop prices and land acquisition compensation

Demanding a hike in sugarcane prices and timely clearance of pending cane dues, a large number of farmers , including women, attended a mahapanchayat organised by the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) at the Ganna Sansthan in Lucknow on Friday.

Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait at the farmers’ mahapanchayat organised by the union at Ganna Sansthan, in Dalibagh, Lucknow, on Friday. (HT Photo)

The gathering turned into a platform for farmers to highlight the widening gap between the cost of cultivation and returns from agriculture, with BKU spokesperson Rakesh Tikait accusing the BJP government of failing to safeguard farmers’ interests.

The union’s principal demand was an increase in the minimum support price of sugarcane, with its leaders arguing that farmers were struggling to sustain cultivation as the cost of agricultural inputs continued to rise without a corresponding improvement in the prices they received for their produce.

In a politically charged speech, Tikait accused the BJP government of wrongdoing involving paddy procurement, sugarcane, donations and elections.

He said, “These people are indulging in theft. They have stolen from paddy farmers, sugarcane farmers, temples, donations and even votes. They are being caught, but the judge is theirs, the lawyer is theirs, and so are the police and the investigating officer.”