Sugarcane Farmers’ Indefinite Chakka Jam Enters Second Day, Highway Traffic Hit
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Kolhapur, Oct 14 : The indefinite ‘Chakka Jam’ agitation led by Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana (SSS) president and former MP Raju Shetti, along with Karnataka’s Rayat Sanghatana, entered its second consecutive day on Wednesday, severely disrupting traffic on the Pune-Bengaluru National Highway.
Hundreds of farmers from Maharashtra and Karnataka have been blocking the highway at the Kognoli check post on the inter-state border since Tuesday morning, pressing for their demands after talks with Union Ministers Pralhad Joshi and Shivraj Singh Chouhan in New Delhi on October 12 failed to yield a breakthrough.
The protesting farmers continued their agitation through the night, sleeping on the highway after dinner. They also set up makeshift stoves on the road to prepare meals, signalling their determination to continue the indefinite protest until their demands are met.
The agitation has also paralysed traffic around the Hattarki toll booth near Belagavi, bringing vehicular movement between the two states to a standstill. Hundreds of trucks, container vehicles and passenger vehicles remained stranded, prompting local authorities to issue travel advisories during the night.
The Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) has suspended or significantly curtailed bus services between Kolhapur and Belagavi, leaving thousands of commuters inconvenienced.
The farmers are demanding a minimum selling price of Rs 50 per kg for sugar, a procurement rate of Rs 70 per litre for ethanol and direct central assistance of Rs 500 per tonne of crushed sugarcane. They have also sought measures to enable sugar mills to sustainably pay farmers a first instalment of Rs 5,000 per tonne.
District police have appealed to the public to avoid travelling towards Belagavi and use alternative routes via Satara, Tasgaon, Miraj and Gokak to bypass the blocked inter-state corridor.
Meanwhile, the Nipani Bar Association has extended its support to the protesting farmers. Lawyers from Nipani visited the agitation site at the Kognoli check post and assured the farmers that they would provide free legal advice in cases related to the agitation.
