Karnataka sugarcane protest turns tense! In Belagavi, sugarcane farmers threw slippers on the car of Minister Shivanand Patil, the atmosphere heated up on the demand of increasing the prices – CM demanded a meeting with PM Modi, now everyone’s eyes are on Friday’s meeting.
Belagavi (Karnataka News): The ongoing protest by farmers in Belagavi district of Karnataka demanding increase in the prices of sugarcane crop has now become more intense. On Thursday, the eighth day of the agitation, farmers threw slippers at the car of Minister of State Shivanand Patil as he was leaving the protest site. This incident happened near Arihant Chowk in Belagavi, causing chaos in the area. Minister Patil had come to talk to the farmers, but even after the talks, when no concrete assurance was received on their demands, the angry farmers started shouting slogans in anger and the atmosphere became tense.
After all, why are the sugarcane farmers so angry?
The biggest demand of the farmers is to increase the support price (Fair and Remunerative Price – FRP) of sugarcane. They say that the production cost is not covered at the current price, and they are incurring huge losses. Minister Shivanand Patil appealed to the farmers to maintain peace and said, “The right to fix sugarcane prices is not with the state government, but with the central government. Fixing the FRP is a central subject.” He said that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is going to hold an important meeting with all the sugar mill owners across the state on Friday, in which a major decision can be taken on providing relief to the farmers.
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Farmers’ warning: If the decision is not taken, the agitation will intensify!
Farmer organizations have clearly said that if no concrete decision is taken on the price of sugarcane in Friday’s meeting, the agitation will be intensified. He also alleged that the government is only holding meetings but no action is being taken at the ground level. This movement is spreading rapidly in districts like Belagavi, Bagalkot, Vijaypura, Vijayanagar, Bidar, Gadag and Hubli-Dharwad.
Chief Minister’s letter to PM Modi: “The situation is serious”
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding an immediate meeting. He said, “We are constantly trying to hold talks between farmers and sugar mill owners, but the situation is worsening.” In this letter, the Chief Minister has warned about the increasing economic problems of sugarcane farmers and future crisis in rural areas.
Will this sandal incident break the Centre’s silence?
The incident of slippers being thrown at a minister in Belagavi has created a political stir across Karnataka. Now all eyes are on Friday’s meeting, where it will be decided whether farmers will get relief or the movement will flare up further. The resentment of sugarcane farmers has now become a challenge for both the government and the Centre. If no concrete steps are taken this time too, then this movement can have a big impact politically.