Sugarcane farmers attempt to lay siege to Deputy Commissioner’s office in Mysuru

Sugarcane farmers staging a protest outside the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Mysuru on Tuesday (November 3). | Photo Credit: M.A. Sriram

Farmers belonging to various farmers’ organisations came together in Mysuru on Tuesday (November 3) to intensify their agitation against the delay in revision of the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) by the Centre and fixation of State Advisory Price (SAP) by the State Government.

The farmers, belonging to different factions of State Sugarcane Growers’ Associations and Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS), gathered at the Dairy Circle and marched to the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Siddharthanagar, where they created a road blockade.

They shouted slogans against the Union and State governments for their failure to fix a scientific price for sugarcane. However, their attempt to enter the Deputy Commissioner’s office and lay siege to the premises was thwarted by the police, who blocked their path with barricades.

The sugarcane growers demanded that the Centre raise the FRP to ₹4,500 per tonne for a 10.25% recovery rate, and that the Karnataka government fix the State Advisory Price (SAP) on the lines of Tamil Nadu, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.

Karnataka State Sugarcane Growers’ Association president Kurubur Shanthakumar said the protesting farmers stayed put on the road for nearly three hours, cooking and eating their meals.

Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Harsha Priyamvada and Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic and Crime) Sundar Raj arrived at the spot and held talks with the protesting farmers.

When the farmer leaders insisted that they would negotiate only after being permitted inside the Deputy Commissioner’s office, the police relented and allowed some of them to enter, said Mr. Shanthakumar. While continuing their demonstration, farmer leader Hosakote Basavaraju submitted a memorandum of demands to Additional Deputy Commissioner Aishwarya.

The farmers also demanded an end to cheating in sugar recovery estimates, malpractices in sugarcane weighing, and delays in payments, urging the government to fix a fair price instead of playing with the lives of struggling farmers.

Earlier, addressing the gathering Mr Shanthakumar said the SAP has been fixed at ₹4,480 in Punjab, ₹4,200 in Uttar Pradesh, and ₹4,000 in Tamil Nadu. However, in Karnataka Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar is misleading farmers and shedding crocodile tears, making lame excuses that the state lacks the authority to fix prices. 

While criticising the alleged attempts to derail the ongoing agitation by sugarcane farmers of North Karnataka, Mr. Shanthakumar said the Centre had pushed the farmers into distress by fixing a low FRP.

KRRS president Badagalapura Nagendra criticised the lack of action by the Chief Minister, who convened a meeting in Belagavi and sought two days’ time. “A massive protest will be staged at Freedom Park in Bengaluru on November 6. If the government fails to wake up immediately, the agitation will be expanded to every village”, he warned.

Manju Kiran from KRRS’ Collective leadership faction said Sugarcane Farmers Association leader Hallikerehundi Bhagyaraj too participated in the protest.

Published - November 03, 2026 06:56 pm IST