BKU (Doaba) to hold road blockade on Dec 30, wants cane arrears paid

Following a call given by Sanyukt Kisan Morcha and Kisan Mazdoor Sangh for “Punjab bandh” on December 30, the activists of Bhartiya Kisan Union (Doaba) headed by its president Manjit Singh Rai will observe a road blockade from 7 am to 4 pm on December 30. The decision was taken at a state-level meeting of BKU (Doaba) held at Phagwara today.

Talking to journalists after the meeting, BKU general secretary Satnam Singh Sahni said that the road blockade would be held in Phagwara, Samrala, Jagraon and Nawanshahar. Similarly, road blockades would be organised in Hoshiarpur, Barnala, Fatehgarh Sahib and Ropar districts.

However, Sahni said that it was decided in the state-level meeting that during the road blockade, vehicles like ambulances, wedding cars, students going for various examinations, vehicles going to airports, among other emergencies, would be allowed to ply and pass through the blockade to avoid inconvenience to the people.

Kirpal Singh Musapur, vice-president, BKU Doaba, Kulwinder Singh Athaouli, its Phagwara circle in-charge, Santokh Singh Lakhpur, its vice-president were among those who participated in the meeting.

During the meeting, the farmer leaders discussed that Rs 27-28 crore of arrears of sugarcane farmers for the 2021-2022 season was yet to be paid by the Golden Sandhar Sugar Mill, Phagwara are and they had lost all hopes from the government regarding their payments.

The farmer leaders decided that in regard to the pending payments of sugarcane farmers, a state-level meeting of leaders and members of BKU Doaba and sugarcane farmers would be held on January 8, 2025 at Sukhchaina Saheb Gurudwara in Phagwara.