The farmers’ protest in Maharashtra continued to be violent in several parts of the state on Friday after protesters took to vandalising vehicles transporting milk, produce and meat to cities such as Mumbai, Pune and Nashik, Mint reported. Section 144 has been imposed in some parts of Nashik and several farmers have been detained during their protests, ANI reported. The agitators are demanding increased rates for their produce and a debt waiver.

Some farmers in Shirdi spilled several litres of milk on the road as part of their protest. Apart from waivers, they want free electricity, appropriate remuneration for their produce, irrigation grants, higher prices for milk and the implementation of the MS Swaminathan Committee recommendations.


“The strike won’t have much impact today because the vegetable and fruit stocks have been offloaded yesterday only,” Ashok Walunj, a director on the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee told Mint. “We will have to see what impact the strike has tomorrow on supplies coming from the neighbouring states as well as hinterlands of Maharashtra.”

The farmers had decided to go on strike on May 30 after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis told the representatives of the Kisan Kranti Morcha – a state-level coordination committee of various farmers’ outfits – that the government needed some time to decide. The chief minister had also urged them to postpone their agitation. “The chief minister explained his shortcomings, but we want immediate relief for the farmers,” Shantaram Kunjir, a farmers’ leader from Pune, told Hindustan Times.

On Thursday, protesting farmers in Nashik, Satara and Kohlapur reportedly emptied tankers of milk that were being transported to the cities and destroyed stocks of vegetables. The driver of a milk tanker was roughed up near Satara while stones were thrown at some vegetable and police vehicles near Nashik.