Maharashtra dairy farmers' protests: Swabhimani Paksha MP Raju Shetti meets water resources minister, threatens state-wide strike

Mumbai: Swabhimani Paksha MP Raju Shetti, who is leading an agitation for higher milk purchase prices, on Wednesday night said he would be meeting Maharashtra Water Resources Minister Girish Mahajan. Sources in the government said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has asked Mahajan to meet Shetti in a bid to end the agitation which started on Monday. [caption id=“attachment_4689751” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of MP Raju Shetti. Image courtesy: Facebook[/caption] Shetti, who is camping in Dahanu, close to the Gujarat border, confirmed that he got an invitation for talks from Mahajan. “I will meet him tonight, but my demand is unchanged. I want increase of Rs 5 per litre in the milk purchase price, and I am not going to back down,” Shetti told PTI. Shetti’s party has proposed a state-wide agitation for Thursday, appealing farmers to block roads with their cattle. Earlier in the day, Shetti landed in Dahanu, vowing to stop the trains carrying milk to Maharashtra from Gujarat. Railways have made special arrangements for supply of milk to Mumbai. A Western Railway official on Tuesday had said milk tankers will be attached to the Ahmedabad-Mumbai Central passenger train to mitigate problems faced by consumers. “I will see to it that no train carrying milk from Gujarat to Mumbai passes from this station,” Shetti had said.