Farmers threaten stir again on May 17

KURUKSHETRA: Haryana farmers are again up in arms against the government and on Wednesday threatened to launch an agitation on May 17, if their demands, including implementation of Swaminathan Commission report recommendations, were not met.
On March 1, around 30,000 farmers had blocked the Delhi-Chandigarh National Highway near Pipli town of Kurukshetra district for over nine hours.They had lifted the blockage after an assurance by Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda to look into their demands.
The farmers' leaders have announced that over 50,000 farmers would gather at the same venue on May 17, if their demands were not accepted by the government soon.
They have been demanding fixation of minimum support price of rice and wheat as per the Swaminathan Commission report, which recommends 50 per cent of the profit to farmers.
"The CM did not do anything to keep his promise even after two months to resolve the issue," alleged Vijay Mehta, state general secretary of Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU).
"We would soon decide our strategy on whether to block the rail track or road," said Gurnam Singh Chaduni, state president of BKU.
"Farmers will proceed to state finance minster Mohinder Singh Chatha's residence at Pipli town as he represents the area," said Chaduni.
They have also been demanding to allow them to lift sand from their fields, situated in the adjoining areas of rivers, to sell it further. Wild animals, which destroy the crops, have also been a cause of concern for the farmers.