**Jalandhar, October 21, 2024** — On Monday, farmers in Punjab began a protest against the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, over issues related to the state’s paddy procurement process. The protesters blocked the Jalandhar-Ludhiana highway, causing significant disruption to traffic.The farmers expressed their frustration with the government’s handling of the paddy procurement process, with some stating that paddy has not been purchased at local mandis for over 15 days. “Paddy is not being purchased in the mandi. It has been 15 days and not even a kilo of paddy has been bought. The government has no policy for this,” a protesting farmer said.The protest was organized after the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Doaba) announced a blockade in Phagwara, following the government’s failure to resolve the ongoing procurement issues. Farmers are demanding immediate intervention from the state government to address the delays in lifting and purchasing their paddy crops.The protest highlights growing discontent among farmers in the region, who are already grappling with financial difficulties due to delays in crop procurement.