Farmers Movement Archive

Farmers' agitation: Women power to fore at protest sites

Women power came to the fore today during the ‘Bharat bandh’ call given by farmers under the aegis of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha to protest against the three farm laws. As a result, the protest sites saw a sea of “kesari” and green from “dupattas” worn by them.Across all dharna sites, including the ones on the railway tracks, women came out in large numbers to give a fillip to the protests. At some places such as Bhaini Bagha in Bathinda, women protesters outnumbered male counterparts, and blocked roads by staging a dharna.Why the trendEven as the normal life in the state came to a grinding halt, women were seen leading the protests at many places, especially in the Malwa region.In Jagraon, near Ludhiana, a number of women laid siege to the highway. In Mansa, women led a protest march in the city, while in Barnala, the maximum participation of women was seen at Dhanaula and Bhadaur protest sites.Narinder Kaur Sohal, who led the protesting women in Moga, told The Tribune many women who had lost their sons and husbands to suicide because of rural indebtedness participated in huge numbers.“These women have suffered the ill effects of government policies, which are often made without checking the ground realities. They can sense what the farm laws can do to hit them economically. They are even inspiring other women from farm households to join the protest. That is why we are seeing a rapid increase in women protesters in the past one month,” she said.Another reason for their good turnout was that most of the male members of the family had left for the protest sites at the Delhi border on March 23. Most are still camping and protesting at Singhu and Tikri borders, leaving the women and elderly here to join the protest here.Amarjit Kaur, a retired lecturer, who was leading the protests at Barnala, said at each of the four protest sites in Barnala district, more than 1,000 women participated, as their men folk were in Delhi.“The women are taking a lead role in protests across the state as the men folk and youngsters have been camping at the Delhi border,” she said.

The Tribune

2021-03-27

Chandigarh