(MOREPIC1)Raj Sadosh/ Sriganganagar.
Following the death of Sant Ram Sihag, a 70-year-old farmer from Chak 2-D village of Sadhuwali Gram Panchayat, reportedly due to shock, farmers have started a hunger strike at the Gajar Mandi site near Sadhuwali village.
Kisan Sangharsh Samiti district president Amar Singh Bishnoi, while leading the protest, said that the construction of the approximately three and a half km-long boundary walls for the Gajar Mandi will completely cut off access to the 100 farmers families living in 40 dhanis.
Bishnoi said that the decision to develop Gajar Mandi in this year's budget sparked a wave of joy among the farmers not only in Sriganganagar but also in Abohar and Fazilka who were demanding this for about 15 years. But when the site plan was released, everyone was shocked.
KSS spokesman Subhash Sehgal explained that no alternative route has been provided for these people in the revenue records. This will deprive them of access to Sriganganagar city, Sadhuwali village, hospitals, and schools. There is approximately 90 feet of vacant space between the main Gang Canal and on the south side of the market. If the government allocates 16 feet of space, a road can be constructed to resolve the problem. Sandeep Singh of Bhartiya Kisan Union has supported the demand.
Farmer leaders said that they had donated land for the LNP canal in 1932. The canal has been abandoned and Gajar Mandi was being developed on the same land but they have to struggle just for a passage
