Maha season begins : but farmers are not in fields

Friday heralded the beginning of the Maha season according to the agrarian calendar; but a majority of the farmers across the country were not in their paddy fields sowing seeds but were on the streets demanding organic fertiliser which the Government has promised to deliver.

While farmers holding placards and banners were protesting against the import ban on chemical fertiliser and the non-availability of organic fertiliser, tense situations were reported in many districts when the authorities tried to open the sluice gates of irrigation systems, a practice done ahead of the start of the seasonal farming.