Amritsar: Farmer groups linked to the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha held a protest on Tuesday against the Punjab government’s alleged move to sell the Cooperative Sugar Mill at Sheron in Tarn Taran district. As part of the protest, demonstrators burned an effigy of the state government, reports The Tribune.
The protest was led by Nachhattar Singh, district convener of the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha. Several farmer leaders, including Pargat Singh Sheron, Daljit Singh Dyalpura, Mahavir Singh Gill, Puran Singh Marimegha, Manjit Singh Baggu, Gurpreet Singh Gandiwind, Tarsem Singh Luhar, Tarsem Singh Mahal and Jassa Singh Kadgill, addressed the gathering.
The speakers said the sugar mill, which was established in 1987, has played an important role in providing jobs to hundreds of local youth. They added that the mill has also supported the government’s crop diversification efforts and processes sugarcane supplied by a large number of farmers from the Mand area.
The farmer leaders said the people of the region would strongly oppose any attempt to sell the mill. They stressed that as a cooperative unit, the sugar mill belongs to the farmers of the area and should not be sold by the government.
The United Kisan Morcha has appealed to other organisations to take part in a meeting scheduled for January 22 to step up the agitation on the issue. The Sheron Cooperative Sugar Mill is spread over an area of more than 98 acres.
