Farmers across Punjab have raised concerns over the continued use of manual weighing scales in grain markets, alleging that inaccurate measurements are causing them financial losses. They have demanded the use of digital weighing machines for procurement operations.Despite repeated instructions by the authorities concerned to adopt digital weighing machines, traditional scales continue to be widely used in mandis, farmers said.According to farmers, manual weighing scales can be easily manipulated, leading to discrepancies in the recorded weight of their produce. They have also alleged that they do not always receive payment for the actual quantity sold.“Manual weighing scales can be easily manipulated and often lead to discrepancies in weighing the produce. There is no transparency if the produce is weighed with the help of manual scales,” said Tarsem Singh, a farmer from Ludhiana.Another farmer, Gurbakhshish Singh, said they had been raising the issue for years. Despite directions to switch to digital weighing machines, commission agents continued to use manual scales, resulting in losses to farmers, he alleged.Commission agents, meanwhile, said many grain markets lacked proper electricity points to operate digital machines. They also pointed to uneven surfaces in several mandis, which, they said, made it difficult to install and operate digital weighing scales accurately.“Unless the infrastructure-related issues are addressed, the transition to electronic weighing systems will remain challenging,” said Davinder Singh, a commission agent.Ludhiana District Mandi Officer Gurmatpal Singh said instructions had already been issued to commission agents regarding the use of digital weighing machines. However, arhtiyas continued to cite practical difficulties and other concerns over adopting them.“If any farmer has any doubt regarding the weight of his produce, he can approach the mandi board and get the produce re-weighed on the digital weighing scale that is available in every mandi,” he said.