Farmers at Goraya locked the office of the XEN, Power Department, during a protest against incessant electricity cuts in Jalandhar on Monday.Members of the Bharti Kisan Union (Doaba), who had gone to the XEN’s office to protest the power cuts, locked the main gate of the premises when they saw the XEN leaving in his vehicle.The gate remained locked for half an hour, during which the official stayed inside. He later met the farmers to hear their demands.Farmers alleged that rural areas and villages in Goraya and Phillaur in Jalandhar were facing 12-hour power cuts, leaving women and children especially distressed.About 20 to 30 BKU (Doaba) farmers reached the XEN’s office to register their protest. On seeing the XEN leaving, they locked the gate. The XEN stayed in his office for some time before coming out to address their grievances.During the protest outside the office, farmers also burnt an effigy of the state government and raised slogans against it.Jasvir Singh Sahota, vice-president of BKU Doaba, Punjab, said, “Villages face 12-hour-long power cuts at night. In peak summer, people, especially children and women, are suffering. The government asks us to diversify crops, but this is peak time to irrigate sugarcane and maize. We have repeatedly urged the administration to supply power to fields from 2 am to 10 am.“Instead, power during peak afternoon hours is causing repeated fires. At Bara Pind and Atti villages, 100 acres of wheat stubble were recently destroyed in twin fires. Power restoration in the afternoon causes short circuits at motors, and stubble catches fire within minutes,” he said.Farmer Tarsem Singh, district secretary of the union in Jalandhar, added, “We had no plan to lock the XEN office’s gate today, but we had given prior intimation of our meeting. When he tried to leave, we locked the gate to stop him. Our only demand is that the incessant power cuts be stopped and electricity be supplied to fields at night.”The XEN said, “Electricity is provided by the top management, and they decide on cuts. Yet, we assure that farmers’ problems will be addressed and the issue will be taken up with higher officials.”