Cotton farmers in Sirsa protested against price cuts at mills and halted the auction.
Tensions escalated in Sirsa on Monday when cotton farmers halted procurement and raised slogans against ginning mill owners and the government. They accused the mill owners of underpaying them for their crop. The protest began at the new cotton market on the first day of Navratri when more than 150 tractor-trolleys arrived with fresh cotton (narma) and mill owners began initial purchases.
The farmers halted the auction as soon as it began. They alleged that mill owners quoted a purchase price of ₹6,000 to ₹7,000 per quintal at the market, but later reduced the price by ₹500 to ₹1,000 per quintal during weighing and processing at the mills. The farmers insisted that payment be made at market rates only. They warned that they would not accept reductions at the mill level.
Farmer leader Lakhwinder Singh Aulakh and Arhtiya Sangh President Prem Bajaj arrived at the scene and attempted to mediate. The auction was suspended for about three hours and then resumed after the SDM's assurance.
The protest also highlighted another long-standing issue between commission agents and mill owners regarding payment delays due to the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Commission agents say they pay farmers promptly, but mill owners delay payments by up to 45 days, citing GST procedures. They argue that this puts significant financial pressure on commission agents.
A meeting held at the Market Committee office decided to hold a joint discussion on Wednesday under the SDM's mediation. The meeting is expected to discuss both the pricing dispute and GST-related delays, with the hope of finding a permanent solution.
Several farmers, including Vinod Kumar Pachar of Mattuwala village and Rishi Kalra of Dhingtania, expressed their anger over the discrepancy between auction prices and final payments by mills. Commission agents also reiterated that without prompt payment by mill owners, the current system is unsustainable.
Sirsa Market Committee Secretary Virendra Mehta admitted that the procurement process was briefly interrupted during the auction. However, after negotiations, the procurement process resumed.
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