Farmers from Şarkışla are requesting the repair of the roads damaged before the harvest

The farmers in the district of Şarkışla in Sivas are concerned about the deteriorated rural roads due to the spring rains. Farmers, expressing that they will have difficulty transporting their products as the harvest season approaches, are demanding the repair of the roads.

In Şarkışla, rural roads are damaged during the spring rains, and the issue of transporting products has come to the agenda as the harvest season approaches. Villagers and the village headman are demanding urgent solutions from the authorities. Doğan Gültekin, the headman of Bahçealan Village and the President of the Şarkışla Neighborhood and Village Headmen Association, stated that every year construction machines were allocated to rural roads by the Chamber of Agriculture, but this year this practice has ended as part of cost-saving measures. Gültekin stated that villagers were willing to cover the costs of fuel, but construction machines were not allocated.

“Expense from the farmers, grader from the state”
Gültekin expressed the need for construction machines to repair the roads, saying, “Every year, construction machines were provided to repair our village’s rural roads. This way, we were harvesting without accidents and incidents. This year, we have learned that probably under the guise of cost-saving measures, construction machines are not provided to our village roads. We want to help our state by providing fuel and construction machines from us as part of these cost-saving measures. In addition, if, as we see, our villagers have tractors, if there is an attachment to repair these roads, we can repair our roads with tractors without burdening anyone. Now we need a grader. We only request the allocation of a construction machine grader to us, with fuel money to be provided,” he said.

“Urgent action is needed”
Azimet Topçu, the President of the Şarkışla Chamber of Agriculture, also stated that urgent action is needed for the roads. “As the harvest season approaches, it is necessary to urgently repair the roads. Due to the spring rains, there have been particularly serious damages on our rural roads. That’s why these areas need to be done urgently. We used to do it as the Chamber of Agriculture in the previous processes. This year, we cannot do it because our budget is not suitable. We have no chance to do it. The Special Provincial Administration, with the condition of fuel being covered, all our village headmen agree to this. We request the sending of a grader. At the moment, this place is not only for one village but for 4-5 villages, a transit area. Most of our roads, 70% of them are like this. Of course, there are better places, it’s a different issue, but it is not right to look from a single perspective. Our farmers will transport their products through these roads during the harvest season. It is necessary to urgently repair these roads in order to prevent accidents while bringing their wheat harvest cars here. We announce this to our elders,” he said.