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Farmers Protests & Clash with Police Over Procurement Policy in Pakistan

Massive farmer protests have been taking place in Pakistan for the past week, led by the Kissan Ittehad Pakistan (KIP) group. One hundred protesters were arrested by police on Monday as they gathered at GPO Chowk in The Mall Lahore and tried to march towards the Punjab Assembly.
Sputnik
Pakistan's farmers and agricultural community have been protesting against the new wheat procurement policy, with marches leading to clashes with heavily armed police, according to the Dawn newspaper.
Several protesters were arrested. Political parties, including the PTI, supported the farmers' cause.
According to the farmers, they are protesting against the delay in the purchase of grain and the reduction in the provincial procurement quota from over 4 million tonnes to 2.3 million tonnes.
Mian Umair Masood, general secretary of Kissan Ittehad, who led the protest, told Pakistani news that more than 250 farmers had been detained by police in Lahore. However, he escaped arrest.
Looking ahead, Mr Umair revealed that the farmers were planning to escalate their protests by blocking Punjab's highways with the help of their families and animals. The opposition, including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Jammat-i-Islami, as well as some ruling party lawmakers, have expressed support for the farmers' cause.
On May 1, the world celebrated Labour Day, a public holiday, but the irony is that the fate of labourers, farmers and workers remains the same this year.
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