FAISALABAD: Dozens of sugarcane farmers besieged the Tandlianwala Sugar Mills, Kanjwani, for non-payment of dues and staged a protest demonstration on Monday.

The protest was organised by the local office-bearers of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

Farmers besieged the main gate of the mills and did not allow entry or exit of any employee.

The protesting farmers told reporters the mills had purchased the crops on the promise of cash payments, but they backtracked and made them rolling stones.

Farmers claimed they had visited the mills repeatedly, but the management did not even bother to meet them.

A farmer, Imran, said the mills owed millions of rupees to over five dozen farmers.

Addressing the farmers, PTI’s Punjab President Ijaz Chaudhry said the government had given subsidy in billions to owners of sugar mills, but nothing was being done for the poor farmers.

The protesters dispersed peacefully after the mills administration held talks with farmers and assured them that payments issue would be resolved within a fortnight.

burn wounds: Four labourers sustained burn wounds on their faces with the steam of an under-repair boiler of a factory on Satyana Road here on Monday.

The Rescue 1122 personnel said workers Ikram, 45, Riaz, 35, Kaleem, 47, and Javed, 35, were repairing a valve of the boiler when their faces sustained burn wounds due to sudden outpouring of steam from the boiler. The injured were shifted to Allied Hospital with moderate burn injuries.

Published in Dawn January 27th, 2015

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