BKU (Doaba) threatens to step up stir over sugarcane arrears

The Bhartiya Kisan Union (Doaba), at a meeting, here today threatened to intensify stir if the payment of the arrears of sugarcane growers, amounting to around Rs 27 crore, could not be released soon.

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Manjit Singh Rai, president, BKU, presided over the meeting.

BKU general secretary Satnam Singh Sahni said cane growers were fed up with the non-cooperative attitude of the management of Golden Sandhar Sugar Mill, Phagwara.

Sahni alleged that the government had turned away from the agreement which was done between senior officers of the Rana Gurjit Group and BKU leaders that the payments would be clear by the group by April 2024 but the agreement failed due to lack of required efforts of the government.

Sahni said discussions would be held with farmer organisations of the SKM (Non-Political) and the KMM, sitting in protest at Punjab and Haryana borders, and after that, protest programme would be announced on September 30 at the Shambhu border.

Later, leaders of the BKU and Arhtiya Association, Phagwara, held a joint meeting under the leadership of Naresh Bhardwaj, member, Federation of Arthiya Association, Punjab, for the issues being faced by them which included lack of space in rice godowns for upcoming season from October 1.

During the meeting, BKU president Manjit Singh Rai supported the call of arhtiyas.