Last resort: Farmers protest low wheat price, high power bills

Agitation called off on receiving assurances from govt on procurement, loadshedding.

LAHORE:

Hundreds of farmers from various districts reached Lahore on tractor-trolleys and pick-up vans on Thursday to stage a protest demonstration in front of the Punjab Assembly against “low support price of wheat and high electricity bills”.

Police stopped them near Chuhng by placing containers on Multan Road. Traffic in the area remained suspended from 8am until 4pm. A large contingent of police was deployed to deal with the protesters.



CCPO Amin Wains and DIG Haider Ashraf held negotiations with farmer leaders but failed to persuade them to call off the demonstration. Pakistan Kissan Ittehad Council leader Chaudhry Anwer Ali said police did no have the authority to address their demands. He demanded that appropriate government leaders talk to the protesters.

He said that after talks with farmers on March 25, Law Minister Rana Sanaullah had assured them that the government would meet their ‘genuine’ demands. But, he said, none of the demands had been met.

After some negotiation with police the protesters agreed to allow traffic on one side of Multan Road. Sanaullah later arrived at the scene and negotiated with the council leaders. The council called off its protest after the talks with the minister.

Speaking to the media, the minister said wheat procured by small farmers had already been purchased. He said the government believed that further purchases would only benefit the hoarders.

“The council says that small farmers still have wheat [to sell]. The government will purchase the crop on confirming the status of farmers selling it,” the minister said. He said the formula to procure wheat had been devised by the Food Department.



Sanaullah said the farmers’ complaint regarding overcharging for electricity was genuine. He said power connections of the farmers who had cleared their current bills would be restored in two days.

The minister said the Prosecution Department would withdraw cases registered against some farmers during their earlier protest.

Chaudhry Anwer Ali called for supplying uninterrupted power to farmers for at least four hours a day.

Responding to this, Sanaullah said the water and power minister had been consulted in this regard and a formula would be devised to meet the demand. “The government can never achieve its goals without farmers’ support. Their lawful concerns will be addressed,” he said.

An agreement was signed on the occasion between the government and the protesters after which they dispersed.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 5^th, 2015.