Vidarbha farmers threaten indefinite hunger strike

Nagpur, Oct 26 (UNI) Farmers, activists in Vidarbha have threatened to go on an indefinite hunger strike from November 6 to press their demands, including better prices for cotton and paddy.

Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti (VJAS), a voluntary organisation working among farmers, said the hunger strike would be staged at its head office in Pandharkawda in Yavatmal district and other places all over the region.

The organisation's activists today staged a novel agitation in Kolzari, also in Yavatmal district, to highlight the plight of farmers in Vidarbha. The widow and son of a farmer who committed suicide recently performed a 'pooja' of the statues of Prime Minsiter Manmohan Singh, Union Minister for Agriculture Sharad Pawar and Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh.

Kolzari was chosen as the venue for the agitation because Dr Singh was slated to visit the village during his two-day tour of Vidarbha earlier this year, but the trip was called off at the last minute due to security concerns.

UNI XR KU SB HT2335