Bhartiya Kisan Union decides to lift blockade on Haryana highway after demands heeded

New Delhi, Sep 24: A protest by farmers in Haryana's Kurukshetra was lifted on Saturday morning after the demonstrators' demands were agreed.

The government is understood to have agreed to procure the paddy - lying in the mandis - and the yield ceiling for per acre has been increased to 30 quintal, the farmers' body has said.

"We had talks with the district administration, and they've ensured that paddy procurement will start immediately. As our demands have been met, we have decided to lift the blockade on the road," Gurnam Singh Chaduni, president, the Bhartiya Kisan Union was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

A protest by farmers in Haryana's Kurukshetra that began on Friday morning had caused a massive traffic jam by the night on a key national highway, with hundreds of protesters blockading the road and hundreds of vehicles - trucks and other long-route vehicles, mostly - stuck near Shahbad. Police were seen negotiating with the union leaders. This highway connects Delhi with Chandigarh - passing through one end of Haryana to another - and then further to Shimla and other parts of Himachal Pradesh.

The blockade had caused inconvenience for the general public passing through the highway.

The official procurement begins from October 1. But there are farmers who sowed the crop early or have used early-maturing varieties.