NAGPUR, Oct. 31 -- At least five farmers sustained minor injuries on Friday when police used mild lathi charge to disperse an unruly crowd of protesters who had gathered on the Mumbai-Nagpur Samruddhi Mahamarg, near Vanoja village in Washim district. The protest caused massive disruption, halting vehicular traffic on the high-speed expressway for over an hour. Thousands of farmers and Shiv Sena (UBT) workers, led by Balapur MLA Nitin Deshmukh, marched onto the expressway for a "rasta roko" agitation. The demonstrators were pressing for several urgent demands, including a comprehensive relief package of Rs.1 lakh per hectare for drought-affected and heavy rain-hit farmers, full compensation for widespread crop losses, and the immediate settlement of pending crop insurance claims. The farming community rejected the state government's recent announcement of an advance festival relief of Rs.5,000 per farmer ahead of Diwali, calling it entirely inadequate, even though chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had earlier said that the amount served as an immediate relief for the farmers, until the Centre dispatches larger assistance. On the other hand, Deshmukh clarified that the Samruddhi Expressway, built on farmers' land, is being blocked to demand aid for farmers. Authorities deployed a massive security contingent, with over 1,500 police officers and personnel drawn from across the division stationed at the site, to manage the situation. The route was also heavily barricaded. However, despite the heavy police deployment and official warnings, determined protesters and Shiv Sena (UBT) workers broke through barriers and marched toward the high-speed carriageway....