Tag: Farmers

In an attempt to break the deadlock, a panel of union ministers held fourth rounds of talks with the farm union leaders last evening. The farmers have been protesting for the past week. Among the other demands of the farmers is a legal guarantee of the Minimum Support Price (MSP). Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Minister Arjun Munda, Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai held talks with the farm union leaders and the meeting was joined by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.

Centre Proposes Purchase Plan

Addressing the media after the five-hour-long meeting, Piyush Goyal said the government has proposed the buying of pulses, maize, and cotton crops by government agencies at minimum support prices for five years after agreeing with farmers. The farmer leaders said they will discuss the government’s proposal in their forums over the next two days and thereafter, decide the future course of action.

“Cooperative societies like the NCCF (National Cooperative Consumers Federation) and NAFED (National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India) will enter into a contract with those farmers who grow ‘tur dal’, ‘urad dal’, ‘masoor dal’ or maize for buying their crop at MSP for next five years,” said Goyal. He said that there would be no cap on the purchase quantity and a portal would be developed for this and added that the move would save Punjab’s farming, improve the groundwater table, and save the land from getting barren.

Farmers To Consider Proposal

On the Centre’s proposal, farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said, “We will discuss in our forums on February 19-20 and take the opinion of experts regarding it and accordingly take a decision.” He said that other demands including loan waivers are pending and hoped that these would be resolved in the next two days. He also said that the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march is currently on hold, but will resume at 11 am on February 21 if all the issues are not resolved.

Farmers Protest Background

Since February 13, protesting farmers from Punjab have been stationed at Shambhu and Khanauri points along the state’s border with Haryana. Their ‘Delhi Chalo’ march, initiated by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha to assert their demands, was interrupted by the police.

The farmers’ key demands include a legal guarantee of Minimum Support Price (MSP), the implementation of the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations, pension for farmers and farm labourers, farm debt waiver, no increase in electricity tariff, withdrawal of police cases, and seeking “justice” for the victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence. Additionally, they are advocating for the reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act, of 2013, and compensation for the families of farmers who lost their lives during a previous agitation in 2020-21. (With agency inputs)

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday slammed the Prime Minister Narendra Modi led NDA government over the ongoing farmer’s protest near the border of the National Capital. He accused the government of mishandling the protest situation, resulting in causalities and damage to the lives of the farmers. Expressing dissent on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Kharge wrote, “Modi government is a curse for the farmers of the country.”

He highlighted the BJP’s strategies as false claims and fake promises, terming them “false Modi guarantees.” Kharge emphasised that the centre’s wrongdoings have claimed 750 lives during the past. “First 750 farmers lost their lives, and now yesterday 1 farmer was martyred,” he added.  

देश के अन्नदाता किसानों के लिए मोदी सरकार अभि़शाप है।

लगातार झूठी ‘मोदी की गारंटी’ के चलते ही पहले 750 किसानों की जान गई और अब कल 1 किसान ने शहादत दी और 3 रबर बुलेट से अपनी आँखों की रोशनी खो बैठे हैं।

मोदी सरकार ने किसानों से किया दुश्मनों जैसा व्यवहार,

केवल कांग्रेस… pic.twitter.com/v0zKfzX7OW
— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) February 17, 2024

The ‘Delhi Chalo’ march, initiated by farmers primarily from Haryana, Punjab, and Uttar Pradesh on February 13th, aimed to exert pressure on the Centre to address their demands. Since the march’s inception, numerous reports have surfaced, alleging police atrocities against the farmers.

Kharge’s recent tweet added fuel to the fire, asserting that rubber bullets used by the police had resulted in three farmers losing their eyesight. He accused the Modi government of treating farmers as enemies, proclaiming, “Only Congress will secure them the legal right of MSP!”  

Kharge’s remarks are strategically timed, coinciding with the approaching Lok Sabha election, where the Congress party is actively vying for public attention. His declaration reflects the party’s commitment to championing the cause of farmers, particularly by advocating for the legal recognition of the Minimum Support Price (MSP).   

Meanwhile, the Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU), led by Rakesh Tikait, today held a Mahapanchayat in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh. The congregation is claimed to be an effort to garner support from the farmers of neighbouring states.   

The protest by farmers continued for the fifth day, as thousands of farmers reached Delhi on February 13th for the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march to seek a guaranteed minimum support price (MSP) for the implementation of the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations, pensions for farmers and farm labourers, and “justice” for the victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence, among other demands.

New Delhi: The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmers’ unions, has announced that it will escalate its agitation in the coming days, as farmers and their supporters observed a ‘Bharat Bandh’ on Friday. The SKM said that its Punjab unit will convene a meeting on February 18 at Jalandhar, followed by the meetings of the NCC and the general body at New Delhi, to review the situation and plan the next steps. The SKM also issued a statement on the day of the bandh, accusing the Union government of “spoiling the atmosphere on farmers’ issues” by reneging on its promises made when the 2020-21 sit-in protest at Delhi borders concluded.

“The SKM has decided to intensify the agitation immediately and it will be done with multiple calls for massive actions in coordination with workers and all other sections of the people,” the SKM said in the statement. “The Narendra Modi government has intentionally spoiled the atmosphere on farmers’ issues and deceived people into believing that he is honest and sincere,” it said.

The SKM referred to the “promises” made by the government, which included a committee to consider giving a legal status to MSP and other demands in December 2021. However, seven months later, they formed a committee with those who were openly against giving MSP, and added crop diversification and zero budget natural farming to its agenda, the SKM alleged.

“Instead of holding genuine talks, they are making a mockery of negotiations by sending ministers to the protesters at Shambhu to dupe the people and keeping the points and progress in the discussion ‘secret’, thus keeping the farmers of the entire country in the dark,” it further alleged.

The SKM said that the bandh on Friday showed the “anger of the people against the brutal repression” by the Modi government and the BJP-led state government of Haryana on the farmers at Punjab’s Shambhu border. “The farmers’ anger against the corporate and communal policies of the Narendra Modi government has erupted today with their massive participation in the Grameen Bharat Bandh,” it said.

The SKM also claimed that it was one of the biggest-ever mass actions of the people in independent India, which helped bring back the issue of people’s livelihood on the national agenda just before the upcoming general elections.

“While the protest in Punjab turned into a near-total bandh, in all other states and Union Territories, villages saw shops, industries, markets, educational institutions and government offices shut down. Huge demonstrations and protest rallies were organised, in which lakhs of people took part with enthusiasm,” it further claimed.

New Delhi: A meeting with three Union ministers will take place again on Thursday evening in Chandigarh to discuss the various demands of the farmers. The Centre called the farmer leaders for the third round of talks in a week, after the previous two meetings held on February 8 and 12 did not yield any results. The farmers, who were camping at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders of Punjab and Haryana, were planning to march towards Delhi to urge the Centre to agree to their demands, such as a law on minimum support price for crops and loan waivers.

The farmer leaders said they will not try to move towards Delhi until the meeting is over, and that they will decide their next steps based on the Centre’s proposals. Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) leader Dallewal told the media here that the meeting will be at 5 pm on Thursday.

Another farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said that the meeting will be with Union ministers Arjun Munda, Piyush Goyal and Nityanand Rai. When asked if the farmers will not march ahead until the meeting is over, Pandher said, “Yes.” “Let’s see what happens in tomorrow’s meeting. We will discuss whatever proposals we get (from the Centre) in our forums and then decide (our next steps),” Pandher said.

Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee general secretary Pandher said they got a message for talks on Tuesday night. “After that, we decided to hold talks,” he said, adding that they got the approval from other protesting farmers for holding talks if the Centre wants it.

Tear Gas, Phone Tracking

However, Pandher criticised the Centre for allegedly firing tear gas shells continuously on the farmers at the Shambhu border, injuring many protesters. Pandher said the Centre tried to “provoke” the farmers, and also accused it of using force on them deliberately.

The farm leader said he was targeted and his phone was being tracked. Pandher urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to instruct the paramilitary forces, stationed at the Punjab-Haryana borders, to not use tear gas on them.

He also said that social media accounts of several farmer leaders have been suspended. When asked if there was any meeting on Wednesday, farmer leader Surjit Singh Phool said there was no meeting with any minister.

“The meeting will be with Union ministers on Thursday. We have received a letter about it,” Phool said. He said Punjab government officials met with farmer leaders to know how many of them will go to the meeting with the Union ministers.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha are leading the ‘Delhi Chalo’ protest to pressure the Centre for their demands.

Rail Blockade In Punjab

The Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) said that farmers will sit on rail tracks at seven locations in Punjab on Thursday to protest against the Haryana Police action against the protesting farmers at the borders.

BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) president Joginder Singh Ugrahan said their protest will be from 12 noon to 4 pm. He said the decision was taken to protest against the use of tear gas shells and water cannons on the protesting farmers by the Haryana security personnel at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders.

NEW DELHI: Agitating farmer union leaders Jagjeet Singh Dallewal and Sarwan Singh Pandher on Wednesday said that they don’t want any confrontation with the Centre and are ready for talks to resolve all the issues related to their demands, including a law guaranteeing minimum support price for their crops. “We don’t want confrontation, we want dialogue. The meeting for tomorrow has been scheduled for 5 PM,” the farmer leaders said while addressing a press conference this evening. “While we were in discussion, our Twitter handle was shut down by the government, stating that we are engaging in anti-national activity. This is incorrect,” they added.

They went on to add, ”The central government is provoking us. The Centre does not want us to proceed with dialogue; instead, there is continuous SHELLING on us… Today, we responded to their provocation. The attitude of the Center is not right……and you speak for dialogue.”

#WATCH | “The meeting with Centre will be held at 5pm tomorrow,” says Punjab Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee General Secretary Sarwan Singh Pandher at Rajpura bypass in Punjab. pic.twitter.com/54wpNxoBMu
— ANI (@ANI) February 14, 2024

The protest this time has been called by Sanyukt Kisan Morcha and Punjab Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee led by farmer union leaders Jagjeet Singh Dallewal and Sarwan Singh Pandher.

Tear Gas Fired At Farmers At Punjab-Haryana Shambhu Border

Police lobbed multiple rounds of teargas shells to disperse farmers who were approaching the police barricade at the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border to resume the ‘Dilli Chalo’ protest on Wednesday. To ensure law and order, Delhi police have already enforced Section 144, restricting entry of tractor trolleys and large assemblies.

Mobile internet services, bulk SMS and all dongle services will continue to remain suspended in seven districts of Haryana for another 48 hours till February 15 midnight in view of the ‘Delli Chalo’ call given by farmers’ organisations.

The mobile services were earlier suspended on February 11 morning till February 13 at midnight. According to a notification issued by the Haryana administration, bulk SMS and all dongle services provided on mobile networks, except voice calls, will remain suspended in the jurisdiction of districts Ambala, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Jind, Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa.

Meanwhile, long traffic jams were seen on Wednesday at the Delhi-Ghaziabad border due to the farmers’ protest and security checks put in place by the authorities. Rapid Action Force personnel, Police personnel and Riot Control Vehicles are deployed at the Singhu Border in Delhi in view of the farmers’ protest.

The morning visuals showed intense security arrangements at the Shambhu border in Ambala, Haryana, as farmers who marched towards Delhi on Tuesday clashed with the police. The protesting farmers on Tuesday were seen attempting to break the multi-layered barricades using their tractors and hand weapons. 

The Haryana police, meanwhile, detained several protesting farmers. The police deployed concrete slabs, iron nails, barricades, barbed wires, and police and paramilitary personnel at Kurukshetra in Haryana in view of the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march by the farmers.

The farmers have put forth 12 demands before the central government for which they’re marching to Delhi. The protest this time has been called by Sanyukt Kisan Morcha and Punjab Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee led by farmer union leaders Jagjeet Singh Dallewal and Sarwan Singh Pandher.

According to the protesting farmers, the centre promised them better crop prices, after which they ended the 2021 protest. They are demanding to enact a law guaranteeing a minimum support price (MSP) for all crops, as recommended by the Swaminathan Commission report.

They are also demanding a complete debt waiver and a scheme to provide pensions to farmers and farm labourers. The farmers have also urged to scrap the Electricity Amendment Bill 2020 and are demanding to reintroduce the Land Acquisition Act of 2013, ensuring consent from farmers and compensation at 4 times the collector rate.

Further, they are demanding to punish those involved in the Lakhimpur Kheri killings.An appeal to provide 200 days of employment per year and a daily wage of Rs 700 under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA), linking it with farming, has also been made by the farmers. Also, they have demanded compensation to the families of farmers who died during the protests in 2021 and a job for any family member has been put in place. 

New Delhi: Police fired numerous tear gas shells to scatter farmers attempting to breach the police barricade at the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border as they resumed the ‘Dilli Chalo’ protest on Wednesday. Drones were also used to drop tear gas shells on the thousands gathered, while several farmers were detained at the border.

Security arrangements have been beefed up on inter-state borders between Punjab and Haryana as the farmers continue to agitate and march towards the national capital with various demands on Centre’s agriculture policices icluding a law guaranteeing a minimum support price (MSP) for all crops.

In order to maintain law and order, the Delhi police have already implemented Section 144, which prohibits the entry of tractor trolleys and large gatherings.  Meanwhile, Commuters encountered difficulties as traffic congestion due to the heavy security deployment and barricades alongside protesting farmers slowed movement resulting heavy traffic jams.

The farmers intend to march to Delhi from the Ambala-Shambhu, Khanauri-Jind, and Dabwali borders. Mobile internet services have been suspended in seven districts of Haryana and Section 144 was imposed in Panchkula and Chandigarh.

The farmers have put forth 12 demands before the central government for which they’re marching to Delhi. The protest this time has been called by Sanyukt Kisan Morcha and Punjab Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee led by farmer union leaders Jagjeet Singh Dallewal and Sarwan Singh Pandher.

According to the protesting farmers, the centre promised them better crop prices, after which they ended the 2021 protest. They are demanding to enact a law guaranteeing a minimum support price (MSP) for all crops, as recommended by the Swaminathan Commission report. They are also demanding a complete debt waiver and a scheme to provide pensions to farmers and farm labourers.

The farmers have also urged to scrap the Electricity Amendment Bill 2020 and are demanding to reintroduce the Land Acquisition Act of 2013, ensuring consent from farmers and compensation at 4 times the collector rate.

Further, they are demanding to punish those involved in the Lakhimpur Kheri killings.An appeal to provide 200 days of employment per year and a daily wage of Rs 700 under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA), linking it with farming, has also been made by the farmers. Also, they have demanded compensation to the families of farmers who died during the protests in 2021 and a job for any family member has been put in place. 

Chandigarh: Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher on Tuesday decried the heavy barricading along the borders of Punjab and Haryana in view of the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march, saying the state borders have been turned into “international borders”. He also accused the Manohar Lal Khattar government of harassing farmers in Haryana.

“It does not seem Punjab and Haryana are two states. It seems they have become the international border,” Pandher told reporters in Fatehgarh Sahib district ahead of the farmers’ march to Delhi.

The farmers are demanding a legal guarantee for MSP, implementation of the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations, pensions for farmers and farm labourers, farm debt waiver, withdrawal of police cases and “justice” for victims of the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act, 2013.

Pandher said while the media has blamed the farmers for blocking roads, the government itself has blocked roads.

“Even today we are not saying that we will block roads. The government itself has blocked roads for the past two-three days,” Pandher, who is the general secretary of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, said.

Concrete walls have been erected at the Punjab and Haryana borders, he said. “We grow foodgrains and we feed the country and they have grown a crop of nails” for us,” Pandher said while referring to the elaborate arrangements made by the Haryana authorities to prevent farmers from moving towards the national capital.

He alleged that many farmers allowing allegiance to them have been detained in Madhya Pradesh. Lashing out at the Haryana government, Pandher said Haryana has been turned into “Kashmir valley.” He alleged that the state government has sent policemen to every village to harass farmers and deployed water cannons.

Referring to the meeting with the Union Ministers, Pandher said as the meeting remained inconclusive, they decided to head towards Delhi.

He said farmers rejected the ministers’ offers of formation of a committee over their demands, especially legal guarantee to the minimum support price.

Union Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda along with Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal held a meeting with representatives of farmers on Monday. However, the meeting on the demands put forward by farmers remained inconclusive.

Farmers under the banner of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha plan to head to Delhi from the Ambala-Shambhu, Khanauri-Jind and the Dabwali borders.

New Delhi: Security measures have been significantly increased in and around the national capital, Delhi, and its neighboring areas in anticipation of the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march organized by farmer organizations on February 13. To mitigate any potential unrest, law enforcement authorities have installed large containers, cemented and iron barricades, as well as water cannons at the Singhu border of Delhi.

Delhi has imposed Section 144 (prohibitory orders) for a period of 30 days, until March 12 in the national capital in view of the ‘Delhi Chalo March’ call given by farmers for Tuesday.

Online Classes In Noida

Noida authority has asked schools located in the vicinity of the Noida express to conduct virtual classes for students of all the classes ahead of the farmer’s protest to avert any untoward incident. 

CRPF Deployed, Mobile Internet Services Suspended In Haryana

To maintain the law and order situation in the state, Haryana has deployed the CRPF and other security agencies. Mobile internet services and bulk SMS have also been suspended in seven districts until February 13.

In view of the farmers’ protest, the Gurugram police on Monday tightened security on the Mewat, Rewari, and Jhajjar borders. Meanwhile, Gurugram police started checking suspicious vehicles and also put up barricades on the border for vehicles entering Gurugram while a large number of security personnel were deployed there.

In Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana, Section 144 of the CrPC has been imposed in the city for 60 days.