Farmers in Kurukshetra locked the naib tehsildar’s office at the New Mini Secretariat on Tuesday, alleging that incorrect paddy and land records on a government portal were preventing them from selling their produce and obtaining gate passes at procurement centres.
The protest, led by the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Shaheed Bhagat Singh), lasted nearly two hours. The farmers opened the office after Sub-Divisional Magistrate Aman Kumar assured them that the discrepancies would be corrected by 2 pm on Wednesday.
The farmers reached the office at about 11.30 am carrying a chain and lock, then staged a sit-in outside after securing the premises. They alleged that revenue officials had entered incorrect information without physically visiting the fields and that repeated visits to different government offices had not resolved the problems.
According to the farmers’ union, the discrepancies affected records in a single patwar circle covering about 20 villages. The union alleged that incorrect data had been uploaded for more than 50 farmers. In some cases, non-basmati paddy was recorded as basmati, while agricultural land was marked as barren.
The farmers said such entries were creating difficulties at mandis, where crop and land details are used for procurement-related processes, including the issuance of gate passes. They alleged that they had been approaching the offices of the SDM, tehsildar and patwari for nearly 20 days to have the records corrected. A complaint was also submitted during a grievance redressal camp, but the issue remained unresolved, according to the protesters.
Ravinder Singh, one of the protesting farmers, said the portal initially showed non-basmati paddy on nearly 13 acres of his land. He alleged that the records later showed around seven acres under basmati paddy and nearly two acres as barren. According to him, the changes created hurdles in selling the crop and securing a gate pass.
Before reaching the administrative complex, the farmers gathered near Shaheed Udham Singh Chowk on KDB Road and took out a protest march. They then proceeded to the New Mini Secretariat, where the office was locked and the sit-in began.
The protest highlights the immediate consequences of errors in digitised agricultural and land records. While the farmers’ allegations have not been independently verified in the report, the SDM’s intervention resulted in an assurance of correction within a specified deadline. The farmers sought prompt rectification so that procurement of their paddy would not be delayed.
The administration’s next stated step is to correct the disputed records by 2 pm on Wednesday, after which the affected farmers will be able to pursue the procurement process with updated portal entries.
