Sambalpur: The roads of Sambalpur were chock-a-block Thursday as over 5,000 farmers locked the RDC office here and staged a massive demonstration urging the administration to stop making Aadhaar cards mandatory for paddy procurement and over other demands.
The farmers also demanded to extend their registration period for paddy procurement till October, sought insurance benefits, input subsidy of `100 and a stop to construction of multiple barrages on Mahanadi upstream by the Chhattisgarh government.
They warned of launching a civil disobedience movement if their demands were not met before the end of the current Assembly session. They warned of a showdown November 6 before which they enacted a symbolic protest by locking the main gate of RDC office for 15 minutes.
They also demanded to stop appeasement of industrial units and protect water of Mahanadi for use by people and farmers.
Farmers from 10 districts of Western Orissa under the banner of Paschim Orissa Krushak Sangathan Samanwaya Samiti staged a demonstration outside the RDC office and flayed the state government and Centre for their ‘anti-farmer policies’.
The farmers took out a rally from Gangadhar Mandap which passed through the main thoroughfares of the town before culminating at RDC office.
There in a meeting presided over by Sambalpur unit
president of the outfit
Murari Prasad Purohit, farmer leaders Ashok Pradhan and Lingaraj Pradhan dwelt on
various problems of farmers
and the ‘apathy’ of state
government and Centre in resolving their problems.
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