Hundreds of farmers fought a pitched battle with the police in an attempt to prevent possession on their land acquired by the state government for the Trans-Ganga City Project in Unnao on Saturday morning.

The district administration officials along with a police force had come to remove encroachments from the acquired land.

Several farmers were injured in the baton charge by the police, which also used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the farmers who were demanding better compensation for their land acquired for a residential project.

District Magistrate Devendra Kumar Pandey, however, said the farmers had been adequately compensated.

Several policemen, including an ASP, were also injured when the farmers pelted them with stones.

Pandey said that UPSIDA chief engineer along with other officials reached the site for carrying out construction work when the farmers flocked there and forcibly stopped the work.

The officials tried to pacify the farmers and when they failed, they called the police and district administration to control the situation.

The farmers, however, did not leave the place despite warning by the police and indulged in a verbal spat.

When some farmers started damaging the government vehicles parked at the site, the cops baton-charged them.

However, the police act boomeranged and the farmers went berserk and many of them started pelting police and officials with stones.

Additional police force was called from different police stations to control the situation.

The police arrested VN Pal, a contractor, for inciting the farmers.

The situation came under control after MLA Pankaj Gupta struck a dialogue with the irate mob of farmers.