Pulwama farmers protest encroachment by mafia

Our Correspondent

Pulwama, March 9

Many residents of Dusso village in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district today staged a protest after their saffron fields were excavated during the night and a 200-metre-long and 3-metre-wide road was carved through these, destroying the produce.

The road lies near the Spice Park that has been established to help farmers get good prices for their produce at their doorsteps.

The farmers said they heard the sound of bulldozers around 9 pm but did not pay attention as the mafia was daily active during the night. However, we did not expect that our fields will be encroached upon without our consent, they added.

“At 10 pm, many villagers assembled near the fields and intercepted the bulldozer. They identified four people involved in the act,” said Gulzar Ahmad Deva, a resident of Dusso, one of the affected farmers. He said the fields belonged to 14 families of the village.

The residents said many farmers lost their entire produce during the excavation.

Meanwhile, Agriculture Director, Kashmir, Syed Aijaz Andrabi said he had been informed regarding the matter and he would take an action against the perpetrators.

“I warn the people around the area that no transformation of saffron fields should be attempted or they will face action,” he said, adding that these elements would be dealt with sternly. He also said being the immediate officer to witness the violations, he would lodge an FIR against these persons.

The police said they had registered a case against the identified persons and investigation was on.