Hundreds of agitating farmers and activists of the Raju Shetti-led pro-farmer Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghtana (SSS) staged a blockade of the Pune-Bengaluru highway at Kolhapur on Thursday, demanding a higher fair and remunerative price (FRP) from sugarcane factory owners. Raju Shetti, the leader of SSS, demanded that sugar factory owners in the State’s ‘sugar belt’ districts (Kolhapur, Satara, and Sangli) pay an additional ₹100 per tonne over and above the FRP for the cane crushed in the last season. The protest caused significant traffic disruption throughout the day, despite traffic diversions. Talks between SSS and the Maharashtra government failed to resolve the issue.