Farmers’ Protest, Kisan Andolan Highlights: On Day 2 of the farmers’ protest, the Haryana Police lobbed tear gas shells at the Shambhu border near Ambala at protesting farmers. The farmers have been demanding a guaranteed minimum support price (MSP) in their 12-point agenda, along with the determination of crop prices under the Dr Swaminathan Commission’s report, debt waiver and pensions for farmers and labourers, implementation of the Land Acquisition Act of 2013, allowing for compensation at four times the Collector’s rate, among others.
The call for the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march is given by Kisan Mazdoor Morcha ( KMM) and the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) at the end of December 2023 to remind Prime Minister Narendra Modi of the promises that were made two years back. Farmers from over 200 unions resumed their march towards Delhi after a day of utter chaos on Tuesday, and later in the night declared a “ceasefire”.
Farmers' Protest Day 2 Highlights: Farmers stay put at the Shambhu border in Haryana, where earlier in the day, police lobbed tear gas shells on protesting farmers.
In order to thwart any possible drone attack, a few youths flew kites at the Singhu border in order to bring the drone down by entangling the unmanned aerial vehicle in the kite strings. A protesting youth, who was flying the kite, also expressed anger over the use of drones to drop tear gas shells on the farmers, who are demanding guaranteed MSP on their produce, among others.
Heavy traffic jam was witnessed on Delhi-Gurugram Expressway as police put up barricades for the farmers' protest march.
On Day 2 of the farmers' protest, farm leaders are going to have a video-conference with Central ministers at 6 at Punjab Bhawan in Chandigarh. The meeting has been facilitated by Punjab government.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, on the matter of farmers' protest, says that it is a "democratic" right of the farmers to protest and be heard in the nation's Capital.
"I don't think the border with China is fortified the way this city is fortified. The government should have learnt a lesson from the previous farmers' agitation- consult the stakeholders," he said.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has indefinitely postponed the party’s on-going 'Punjab Bachao Yatra' in solidarity the farmers' protest.
In a post on X, the president of SAD, Sukhbir Singh Badal said, "Shiromani Akali Dal has always stood with and worked for the welfare of farmers and farm labourers. An Emergency meeting of the party's Core Committee has been convened at the HQs in Chandigarh on Feb 15 (tomorrow) at 2 PM to discuss the prevailing situation.
The farmers are also demanding scrapping of the Electricity Amendment Bill 2020, an increase in the number of days of employment under the MGNREGA scheme to 200 days per year with a daily wage of Rs 700, and linking the scheme with farming activities. The farmer unions also advocate for strict penalties on companies involved in the production of counterfeit seeds, pesticides, and fertilizers, along with improvements in seed quality.
Furthermore, farmers are seeking the establishment of a national commission for spices such as chilli and turmeric, as well as the protection of indigenous peoples' rights over water, forests, and land. Read more.
In a bid to safeguard the interests of local agriculture, farmers are urging India to withdraw from the World Trade Organization (WTO) and suspend all free trade agreements. They are pushing for pensions for farmers and farm labourers, as well as compensation for those who lost their lives during the protests in Delhi, including offering employment to one family member.
Farmers across India have presented a 12-point agenda, highlighting their key demands aimed at addressing various issues affecting their livelihoods. Foremost among these demands is the enactment of a law to ensure a minimum support price (MSP) for all crops, aligning with the recommendations laid out in the Dr. M S Swaminathan Commission's report.
Additionally, farmers are calling for a complete waiver of debts for both farmers and laborers, implementation of the Land Acquisition Act of 2013 with provisions for farmers' written consent prior to land acquisition, and compensation set at four times the collector rate. They also seek justice for the victims of the October 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri killings.
Security personnel fired some tear gas shells on farmers Thursday at the Shambhu border near Ambala as farmers gathered there to resume their 'Dilli Chalo' protest on Day 2.
In the 'Dilli Chalo' march, more than 250 farmers’ unions under the banner of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha ( KMM), which claims to have the allegiance of about 100 unions, and the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political), a platform of another 150 unions, have come together to press for their demands. It was coordinated from Punjab. The SKM (non-political) is a faction that broke away from SKM in 2022. Its coordinator is Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who is the president of the Punjab-based Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Sidhupur farm union.
Meanwhile, KMM was formed by Sarwan Singh Pandher, who is the convenor of the Punjab-based union Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC). It had not participated in the 2020-21 protest, but following the protest, it announced the formation of the KMM in Juanry end, and says that it has more than 100 unions across India.
SKM (Non-Political) leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal said that the farmers are ready to talk and it is their priority that talks are held in Chandigarh or anywhere near the protest site.
Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij slammed the Congress for not doing anything during the 10 years of its governance and said, "The report on MSP came in 2004 when Congress was in power. Why didn't they do anything in 10 years?... The farmers wanted to go to Delhi and have a conversation with representatives of the Govt but when they came to Chandigarh, the farmer leaders refused to talk to them. I am surprised that the Punjab Govt has released a notice asking us not to send drones to our border.... When farmers started moving from Amritsar, they did not even try to stop them. This clearly means that they want the farmers to create terror in Delhi. Stone pelting is going on and one of our DSP & 25 other police officers are injured in this..."
Union Minister Arjun Munda, who is negotiating with farmer leaders, said, "I would like to urge all the leaders from different farmers' organizations to cooperate and communicate so that the common people shouldn't have to suffer, govt is determined in this regard... We have assured them that all the works of administrative nature will be fast-tracked... But in the formulation of new laws, there are so many things to consider... In the coming days, we want to discuss with the farmers' organizations and to look for any possible solutions..."
Rahul Gandhi announced on Tuesday that if the Congress forms the government at the Centre, it would provide farmers with a legal guarantee of Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops as per the Swaminathan Commission.
However, in 2010, the Congress government rejected the commission's recommendations for remunerative prices.
The question on the implementation of the Swaminathan Commission's recommendation was asked by BJP's Prakash Javadekar.
To which, KV Thomas, the Minister of State for Agriculture in 2010, informed the Rajya Sabha that the recommendation was not accepted by the government because "MSP is recommended by the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) based on objective criteria and considering a variety of relevant factors. Hence, prescribing an increase of at least 50% on cost may distort the market. A mechanical linkage between MSP and the cost of production may be counter-productive in some cases."
Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh on Wednesday took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and condemned the government's action to "stop farmers from entering to have a peaceful protest".
He said, "We condemn govt action to stop farmers from entering Delhi to have a peaceful protest... Every day in the BJP, the central govt and the Madhya Pradesh government advertisement we see the 'Modi Ki Guarantee'... Yes, Modi's guarantee was there, they (the central govt) held meetings with farmers in which it was decided that a law over MSP would be made, the cases over farmers would be withdrawn, and action would be taken against the minister in Lakhimpur Kheri incident... But, the irony is that PM Modi has chosen the Corporate Minister (Piyush Goyal) to communicate with the farmers, he represents the corporate world and the corporate's interest lies in the exploitation of the farmers..."
Farmer unions call to block Punjab rail track from 12 pm - 4 pm on Thursday.
Security personnel are stationed at the Singhu Border as the administration has beefed up the security in view of the farmers' 'Delhi Chalo' march.
Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher addressed a press conference at the Shambhu border on Wednesday about the inconclusive round of talks with the Centre over farmers' demands.
He said, "There is an attempt to make a perception about us. We have not come here for confrontation with the government."
While talking to the media about the farmers' protest on Day 2 of the 'Chalo Dilli' march, Union Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda on Wednesday said, "I have said this before that we (government) are ready to hold constructive talks with the farmers. We should consider all points and then hold a discussion. Secondly, the farmers should understand that the protest should not create problems for anyone and does not affect normal life."
As the 'Delhi Chalo' march gathers pace and farmers inch forward, massive traffic snarls were witnessed at the Noida-Kalindi Kunj due to barricading, traffic diversion and border security checks.
The administration has dug up roads at a village near the Singhu border to deter the farmers from crossing over the state border as farmers prepare resume their 'Delhi Chalo' march.
Tear gas shells were fired once again at the farmers as they resumed their march and tried to cross the Punjab-Haryana border.
On day 2 of the farmers' protest, Amandeep Kaur, a farmer camped at the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border told PTI, "We have come for MSP of our crops, to demand compensation for our brothers who died in Lakhimpur (Kheri) and loan waiver. Farmers should get pensions, we have come for our rights."
The Haryana government on Tuesday extended the ban on mobile internet and bulk SMS services in seven districts by two days till February 15 in view of the farmers' 'Delhi Chalo' agitation.
These districts are Ambala, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Jind, Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa, the government said in an order, PTI reported.
On the first day of the march, more than 60 individuals, including farmers and members of the media, sustained injuries as police used water cannons and tear gas to disperse the protesters at the Punjab-Haryana border.
A significant deployment of personnel in riot gear stretched across the 8-km-long stretch leading up to the Punjab-Haryana Shambhu border. Over 100 barricades and concrete boulders, covered by barbed wires, lined the road. Singhu border witnessed heavy security deployment, with forces from RAF, CAPF, and the Delhi Police standing guard to prevent farmers from entering the city. Read more
Delhi Police has taken a strict stance on the farmers blocking the Singhu Border and said that the protesters can't be given a single weak point so that they can move into the national capital on their tractors.
During a briefing about the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) at the national capital borders, the forces were told that if farmers are aggressive, they don't need to be defensive either.
"They may sit on the border, that is for the government to see... But we can’t give them even a single weak point as they will push in their tractors," the forces were told.
As the farmers claimed they had come prepared with at least six months of ration and diesel, they prepared food at the Shambhu border on Day 2 of their 'Delhi Chalo' march.
The protesting farmers will continue moving forward and a huge security force has been deployed, fearing the farmers may try to break and scale the barricades again today.