Farmers Movement Archive

Tractor trolley parade turnout unexpected, say protesting farmers

A day after the tractor trolley parade, protesting farmers said they had not expected huge turnout and challenged the government to imagine the scenario on January 26. “We were expecting 50,000 tractors and trolleys for the march. But it reached 1 lakh vehicles. It was absolutely unexpected,” said Santok Singh Sandhu, committee member, Kirti Kisan Union. Mr. Sandhu said that he was sure that the government would not agree to their demands on Friday as well. “They will just go on to show everyone that they are bending and we are not. But we will not step back because these are not the laws we asked for,” he said. Mr. Sandhu said for the Republic Day rally, they have asked families in every village of Punjab, Haryana and other States to send at least one or two members each along with their tractors. “If farmers won’t be left with land, what will they do with the tractor?” he asked. Amreek Singh, chief of Bharat Kisan Union Jalandhar, said that the government has “no brains”. “They have not agreed today [Friday] and it only means that the protest will get stronger. There could be dire consequences and they are not understanding this,” he said. Cleaning machine In another development, at the protest site, as heavy rainfall led to accumulation of garbage and muck, a cleaning machine purportedly worth Rs. 35 lakh was hired and brought by a group of youths from Ludhiana under the banner Punjab Youth Force Organisation (PYFO). “We thought the government will do something, but they did not. They will probably start blaming the farmers for dirtying the place and we will not take any chance. In fact, there’s only one machine here, which is not enough for the entire place, and some help by the authorities would be appreciated,” said Jagjit Singh Mangat, PYFO member and IT-wing head. The machine runs about 12-13 km a day collecting the garbage in a tanker using vacuum and then dumps it at a nearby yard. A group from Sis Ganj Gurudwara also offered shoe cleaning service at the site.

The Hindu

2021-01-09

NEW DELHI