PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
The Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) on Saturday announced a statewide protest on April 14, during which farmers across Uttarakhand will wear black bands and submit a memorandum addressed to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighting pending demands and alleged administrative inaction.
BKU State president Bhupendra Chauhan said that the protest aims to draw attention to unresolved issues affecting farmers. BKU Dehradun district president Sandeep Chauhan said that the memorandum raises concerns ranging from crop compensation to policing and civic infrastructure. Among key demands, the union also sought the immediate arrest of those involved in the March 23 murder of student Divyanshu Jatrana, who hailed from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh and was studying in Dehradun. The union has also asked the government to fix the sugarcane State Advised Price at Rs 500 per quintal and ensure early clearance of pending payments, including dues at Iqbal sugar mill in Haridwar district.
The memorandum calls for a monthly pension of Rs 10,000 for farmers above 60 years, a 50 per cent subsidy on agricultural inputs, free electricity for tube wells and a nationwide farm loan waiver. It also seeks compensation for crop losses caused by recent unseasonal rainfall, which affected standing crops in several districts.
Raising regional concerns, the union flagged erosion by the river in Bhagwanpur Tehsil’s Budhwa Shaheed village in Haridwar district and demanded immediate protective measures to prevent further farmland loss. It also alleged illegal extortion and involvement of some police personnel in mining activities in Buggawala and demanded a DIG-level inquiry.
In Dehradun, the union highlighted alleged drug trade activity in Mehuwala-Shimla Bypass and Kargi areas, garbage dumping along the Bindal river road and the poor condition of irrigation canals between Chakki Tola, Niranjanpur and Pithuwala Khurd.
The memorandum also seeks free education for farmers’ children in English-medium schools, mandatory acceptance of Ayushman cards in private hospitals, resolution of smart meter billing issues in Haridwar and Roorkee and establishment of an AIIMS facility in Muzaffarnagar.
