Farmers protest non-availability of fertilizers in Imphal; storm warehouse

Irate farmers on Monday stormed the government warehouse in Imphal West district on Monday to protest non-availability of fertilizers.
Farmers across the state were facing short supply of fertilizer for the on-going paddy crop season even as the state government, particularly the agriculture minister, claimed that there was no dearth of urea in the government warehouse.
Following information by the district agriculture office, Imphal West on distribution of fertilizers to the farmers, thousands of farmers converged at the district agriculture office in Imphal’s Lamphelpat on Monday morning. However, the officials informed that only 250 bags of urea will be distributed and tokens will be issued to those in the queue in the coming days. Irked by the announcement, the farmers stormed the warehouse.
Timely intervention by the police, stopped the protestors from large scale damages to the fertilizers. Talking to the media, the farmers demanded immediate supply of fertilizers.
“Stop doing politics with fertilizers. Instead address our plights. The season is already late. We would need no fertilizer after the season is over,” the farmers shouted while demanding immediate supply of the fertilizer.
Farmers across the state have been demanding that the fertilizers be made available since the start of the agricultural activities.
The protesting farmers alleged that even though the government including chief minister N Biren Singh and agriculture minister Th Bishwajit repeatedly assured availability of urea fertilizer, which is controlled by the state government, it was yet to be made available to them.
Meanwhile, Manipur government has ordered the constitution of district level committees to ensure availability of urea fertilizers to the farmers. The district level committees to be headed by the deputy commissioner of each district as chairman will also monitor the distribution of the urea fertilizers to the farmers.