That probably was last instance of Joshi getting involved in what is traditionally called constructive social work. He was fast losing his interest in that kind of activities. He decided that working with the farmers to secure remunerative prices for their produce would be his only focus. After January 1980 onion prices began to fall again because of the ban on exports. Farmers were demanding minimum price of Rs. 50 to 70 a quintal. In one of his daily speeches before the farmers, Joshi declared that from 1 March they will do rasta roko on Pune-Nashik highway which he felt would compel Government to take notice of their agitation. In the beginning Joshi was unsure of how many farmers would actually join him because in the past many a times when he had announced rasta roko and had in fact started walking himself towards the road, appealing others to follow him, he had found that hardly seven or eight farmers followed. Others just disappeared from the scene giving one excuse or the other. Somehow, confrontation with the government was unthinkable for them and it was impossible to block the road with so few persons who followed him. He had had to give up his plan on those occasions. Somehow this time four to five hundred farmers started walking behind him. During the previous months SS had intensified its activities and the confidence of the farmers had grown. Within a few minutes they all reached the highway and squatted on the road blocking traffic in both directions. They were shouting slogans loudly and suddenly the atmosphere became tense. Nearby the baton-wielding police force, with their helmets on, was kept ready and was looking menacingly at the farmers. They had instructions from superiors to deal firmly but were just waiting for the final order. As soon as they were signalled, they quickly started pulling seated farmers and pushing them in the police vehicles kept ready nearby. Those Onions in Chakan : First Spark
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