Bhubaneswar, March 25 -- Farmers staged a protest in Odisha's Nilagiri block of Balasore district, alleging irregularities in paddy procurement and unfair deductions at the mandi. The agitation took place at Jamuna mandi, where farmers claimed that procurement was not being carried out as per the token system.

Expressing their anger, farmers placed paddy sacks on the road and blocked traffic at Sheragarh-Udala Jamuna Chowk, disrupting vehicular movement. They alleged that despite having valid tokens, their produce was not being procured on time, while arbitrary deductions were being carried out at the mandi.

One of the protesters said, "Procurement dates had been repeatedly postponed for the last 15 days, and officials are not properly ...