CHARSADDA: Pakistan Kissan Rabita Committee and Badloon Organisation, Charsadda, held protests here the other day against what they described as anti-farmer government policies.
The protest held at Farooq-i-Azam Chowk Charsadda bazaar was attended by a large number of farmers from across the district.
The protesting farmers’ leaders Mehbob Khan, Shahid and other speakers said that industrial mafia had pushed farmers to the brink of abandoning agriculture, threatening the country’s agricultural economy and livelihoods of millions associated with the sector.
They urged the government to address their longstanding grievances without delay, warning that failure to meet their demands would compel farmers to launch a protest march towards Islamabad.
The farmers demanded reduction in fuel prices, immediate cuts in diesel and petrol prices to provide relief to farmers facing rising cultivation and transportation costs. They demanded a just and transparent pricing mechanism for wheat, cotton, sugarcane, maize, rice and tobacco crops.
They also demanded formation of committees at tehsil and district levels to ensure the timely and adequate supply of irrigation water. They called for an end to cultivation of genetically modified (GMO) crops and the excessive use of agricultural chemicals and pesticides.
Leaders of Badloon Organisation said the existing government policies were damaging the agricultural economy and placing an increasing financial burden on farmers. They called upon the authorities to take immediate and practical measures to resolve the community’s problems.
They warned that if the government failed to meet their demands, the protest movement would be intensified and expanded, with a possible long march to Islamabad.
The organisers also urged farmers across the country to unite and join the protest, stressing that collective action was essential to protect their livelihoods and secure the future of Pakistan’s agricultural sector.
Published in Dawn, October 20th, 2026
