BKU (Doaba) to hold protests on Nov 18 over pending sugarcane dues

Leaders and members of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Doaba) on Sunday announced a series of protests across Punjab on November 18 to press the state government for immediate clearance of pending sugarcane dues and compensation for the losses incurred during agitation at Shambhu and Khanouri borders.

The decision was taken at a meeting held at Gurdwara Sukhchaina Sahib, Sukhchain Nagar, Phagwara, under the leadership of BKU (Doaba) state president Manjit Singh Rai. The protest will be held for three hours outside the offices of Deputy Commissioners in Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Nawanshahr and the ADC’s office in Phagwara, followed by the submission of memorandums highlighting the farmers' demands.

The union warned that if the government does not provide a concrete solution, including the release of arrears and compensation, the farmers would intensify their agitation by blocking traffic on the GT Road at Jalandhar on November 21.

During the meeting, the leaders strongly criticised the AAP-led Punjab Government for failing to resolve the long-pending issue of sugarcane payments. They claimed that dues amounting to Rs 27-28 crore remain unpaid by Golden Sandhar Sugar Mill Ltd., Phagwara, while the Rs 61.50 per quintal subsidy, announced in the name of farmers, has still not reached them.

They demanded that the subsidy be transferred directly to cultivators under a "One Booth, One Payment" system instead of being routed through mill owners. They also called upon the government to immediately declare the sugarcane price for the current crushing season and set it at Rs 500 per quintal.