Two hurt as sugarcane stir turns violent in Maharashtra

Mumbai: An agitation by farmers seeking Rs 3,100 per tonne for sugarcane produce turned violent in Maharashtra's Ahmednagar and Aurangabad districts today, with agitators clashing with police who burst teargas shells and fired in air to break up the protests, officials said.

Two farmers and some policemen were injured in the violence which occurred in Shevgaon and Paithan talukas of the contiguous districts of Ahmednagar and Aurangabad respectively, according to police.

Police also fired plastic bullets at the protesters and it was not immediately clear whether the farmers were injured in firing.

The farmers were protesting for the last few days and today they blocked roads leading to sugar mills in Shevgaon taluka.

"The situation went out of hand as farmers hurled stones, following which police used force to control the situation," Ahmednagar SP Ranjankumar Sharma said in a press release.

He said police burst teargas shells and later fired in air in order to disperse the farmers.

"However, as the situation deteriorated, police fired plastic bullets and also used pump action guns," the release said.

An Aurangabad police official said they opened fire in air to control farmers who blocked roads to sugarcane mills in Paithan taluka and nearby areas.

The injured farmers and police personnel were admitted to local government hospitals and all of them were out of danger, sources said.

Sugarcane harvesting season typically begins in the middle of November and lasts till March.

The farmers are agitating at several places in the two districts seeking Rs 3100 per tonne for their sugarcane crop but the millers have not accepted their demand.

On the other hand, sugar mills in districts like Kolhapur and Sangli in western Maharashtra have agreed to pay around Rs 3,300 per tonne to cultivators.

Earlier in the day, the Ahmednagar Police arrested 13 farmers in connection with protests that began on Monday. Unfazed by police action, sugarcane cultivators continued their stir which turned violent.