The Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) has called for a shutdown of the Bengaluru-Mysuru National Highway near the Gananguru toll plaza in Mandya on October 23, citing demands for higher sugarcane prices and a complete waiver of farm loans.
KRRS leader Badagalapura Nagendra said farmers would block the highway to press the state and central governments to address their long-pending demands, according to a report by the Times of India. The proposed action is expected to affect movement on one of the key road links between Bengaluru and Mysuru, although the report did not provide details of the planned duration or any traffic-management measures.
The farmers’ organisation is seeking an increase in the sugarcane price to Rs 5,500 per tonne. Nagendra said farmers in North Karnataka were already staging protests over the issue and referred to the support provided to sugarcane growers in Tamil Nadu.
KRRS also alleged that sugar factories had failed to make timely payments to farmers for cane supplied to them. Nagendra claimed the state government had not held the mills accountable and said several factories were owned by political leaders across party lines. These claims were attributed to the KRRS leader in the report and were not accompanied by a response from the state government or sugar mills.
The proposed highway shutdown links a farm-sector dispute with a direct mobility disruption. The Gananguru toll plaza is located in Mandya district on the Bengaluru-Mysuru route, meaning a blockade there could affect road users travelling between the two cities and local traffic using the corridor. The report did not specify whether the organisation had sought permission for the protest or whether authorities had announced diversions or other arrangements.
Alongside the sugarcane price demand, KRRS is seeking a complete waiver of farm loans, arguing that it would provide relief to farmers facing financial difficulties. The organisation has said that delayed payments from sugar factories and unresolved farm debt continue to place pressure on growers.
The planned action is the latest stated escalation by the farmers’ group in support of its demands. KRRS has identified the Gananguru toll plaza as the protest site and October 23 as the date for the highway shutdown. Further details on the timing, expected duration and traffic arrangements were not available in the supplied report.
