12 July 2004	Monday	23 Jamadi-ul-Awwal 1425

SWABI, July 11: The Pakistan Tobacco Board (PTB) should be abolished because it has been dormant and has failed to implement the tobacco marketing law MLO 487, and work for the rights of tobacco growers, the local farmers' union said on Sunday.

The union, the Ittehad-i-Kashthkaran (IK) which was protesting against the apathy of PTB officials in the face of what they called fleecing tactics of the tobacco purchasing companies, blocked the Swabi-Mardan road for an hour.

Most tobacco farmers said they would like to be known what was the purpose of forming the Pakistan Tobacco Board formed, and many of them alleged that the PTB was in league with the tobacco companies and given them a free hands to exploit the growers in each purchasing season.

The tobacco farmers reached the Adina petrol pump in their tractor-trolleys for the protest from across the district where the IK leaders addressed them. After preliminary discussion they decided to block the road as a protest because all their peaceful gestures had fallen on deaf ears.

They said the companies and small cigarette manufactures did not issue agreements to majority of growers, failed to withdraw 15 newly introduced grades or upheld the tobacco marketing law and were still purchasing tobacco from them on rock-bottom prices.

Police was deployed to deal with any eventuality and the officials of the local administration requested to them to end the blockade but the president of IK Arif Khan insisted that so far a written agreement had not inked with them by the companies he would not end the blockade.

He castigated the provincial and district government and the tobacco buyers who according to him had backed out of all their previous pledges made during the previous years and once again they were forced to block the road.

The superintendent of police also arrived at the protest venue to demand an end to the blockade. He assured that their problems would be discussed with the MNAs, MPAs, and district government and tobacco company representatives.

He pledged that he would discuss the plight of tobacco growers with the aforementioned people/ companies and the IK leaders would also be invited to the combined meeting, after which the growers ended their blockade and returned home.