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Sangli (Maharashtra): A farmer was injured when
police opened fire to quell a violent group during the ongoing
agitation of sugarcane growers which continued for the eighth day,
police said.
The incident occurred in Astha village of Sangli district this
afternoon when a mmob of farmers damaged a police vehicle and
pelted stones at the police.
Police said they warned the agitators and when the crowds could
not be controlled, they fired in the air and shot 25-year-old
Pravin Patil in the leg. He has been rushed to a hospital.
The agitation took a violent turn after the sudden arrest of the
Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana (SSS) chief and MP Raju Shetty, and
other leaders last Monday.
In the agitations to protest the arrests, a farmer activist,
Chandrakant Nalawade, was killed in police firing in Vasgade
village in the district.
The anti-arrests protests have seen roads being blocked, over
three dozen state transport buses torched or damaged, and hundreds
of bus services in Sangli, Satara, Pune and Solapur districts
cancelled, stranding thousands of Diwali holiday crowds.
The protestors also damaged scores of police and private vehicles.
The sugarcane farmers groups have been demanding a price of
Rs.3,000 per tonne, but sugar factories are willing ready to pay
only Rs.2,300 per tonne.
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar Tuesday gave an earful to SSS
chief Shetty, alleging his agitation was targeted against specific
sugarcane factories.
Meanwhile, the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC)
has decided to operate all its bus services to clear the rush of
holiday crowds.
In a related development, social activist Anna Hazare Wednesday
extended his support to the farmers' demands, but said they should
not resort to violence.
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