The ongoing agitation demanding loan waiver by farmers in Nagpur, Maharashtra took a new turn on Wednesday. Prahar Janshakti Party leader and former minister Bachchu Kadu has decided to remove the farmers’ protest from Nagpur-Wardha Highway. He said that now he will meet Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai on Thursday and the further strategy will be decided there.
The decision came after the Bombay High Court directed the protesters to vacate the highway by 6 pm. Taking suo motu cognizance, the court had said that the ongoing agitation on the highway is causing huge hindrance in the movement of people and it is a violation of the fundamental rights of the citizens. Farmers have been on strike for the last two days demanding loan waiver and crop bonus. Despite the court order, a large number of farmers remained present at the protest site.
Also read- Allegation of singing the national anthem of Bangladesh in the Congress meeting, the government ordered an investigation; Gogoi got angry
Trains will be stopped if loan waiver date is not fixed
Former minister and MLA Bachchu launched a scathing attack on the government and said that if the demands of the farmers were not met, the trains would be stopped after 12 noon. He said that our farmers are drowned in debt. If the state government does not have money, the Center should help. On Tuesday, they had reached Nagpur with thousands of farmers and blocked the Nagpur-Hyderabad National Highway. The agitation continued on Wednesday also and the farmers registered their protest by sitting on the railway track. For now, Bachchu has said that the protesters will vacate the highway near Nagpur and move to the nearby grounds.
Also read- Farmers took to the streets in Nagpur, closed the highway for loan waiver; Now the trains have arrived to stop
Relief package of Fadnavis government
Heavy rains and floods in the state in recent months have damaged more than 68 lakh hectares of crops, especially in the Marathwada and Vidarbha regions. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had earlier this month announced a relief package of Rs 31,628 crore for rain-affected farmers. Under this, farmers will be given cash assistance of Rs 10,000 and this relief will cover 29 out of 36 districts. However, farmer organizations say that this package is inadequate and without loan waiver, farmers’ problems will not be solved.
