Kurukshetra – Wednesday marked the second back‑to‑back day of paddy buying in the district, yet a sizable share of cultivators continued to wrestle with the red‑tape surrounding gate‑pass clearance. District officials reported that a total of 6,997 metric tonnes of paddy was procured across 13 of the 22 operating grain markets.
Hunger Strike Erupts at Thanesar Market
Ex‑village headman Rajendra Singh of Kaithla Khurd, fed up with the holdup, began an open‑ended hunger strike outside the Thanesar Market Committee. He was soon accompanied by members of the Bharatiya Kisan Union Shaheed Bhagat Singh, who staged a day‑long sit‑in to amplify their grievances.
Singh recounted that his harvested paddy had been sitting idle in the market for roughly ten days, and that he had been making daily trips to the committee over the past four days to obtain a gate‑pass. He questioned why farmers should bear the brunt of administrative delays when crop verification is a governmental duty.
Officials Assure Prompt Verification
Efforts to calm the situation persisted throughout the afternoon. Thanesar MLA Ashok Arora visited the protest site in the evening, and Market Committee Secretary Harjit Singh later announced that the verification of Singh’s 14‑acre plot had finally been concluded, promising that no further hurdles would be imposed.
Nevertheless, farmer representatives warned that such bottlenecks have become a seasonal routine, forcing cultivators to fight for basic procurement services year after year. The demonstration continued well into the night.
Wider Ramifications
This episode highlights the mounting challenges faced by farmers as the state intensifies its paddy procurement drive. Persistent issues with crop verification and the mandatory gate‑pass system are fueling dissent, underscoring the urgent need for a more streamlined, farmer‑centric approach.
