Farmers Movement Archive

Farmers at UP Gate gear up to tackle summers

Now that the summer has started, farmers protesting at UP Gate are making arrangements, and the union leaders are meeting panchayats to garner the support of farmers across the National Capital Region (NCR).Around 2,000 to 2,500 farmers and people gathered at the protest site on Tuesday. They are taking part in the ongoing agitation on a rotational basis, according to the members of UP Gate farmers’ committee. The protesters have plans to deal with the increase in temperature, they said.“To ensure a good turnout, the dais will be entirely covered, and fans will be installed in a few days. Covered tents used during the winter will be removed and will set up new tents. The existing tents will be covered with haystacks. We have brought two big generators and will rope in more to run fans and desert coolers,” said Jagtar Singh Bajwa, a farmer leader from Uttarakhand and a member of UP Gate farmers’ committee.Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) national spokesperson Rakesh Tikait, who is spearheading the protests at UP Gate, conducted a panchayat with other farmer leaders and members of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha at Garhi Sampla in Rohtak on Tuesday.To keep the momentum of protesters at protest hotspots, Tikait asked people to protest at different sites, in groups. He also urged the central government to form an “agriculture cabinet”, which would focus on various issues faced by the farmers.“The farmers should have known that there is no ‘krishi mantralaya’ (agriculture ministry) or ‘krishi mantri’ ((agriculture minister) in the country. People and farmers are being deceived. Those who talk to us (government representatives) only have 18 per cent charge of the agriculture ministry. There are 17-18 other departments that look after issues impacting agriculture. So, we have asked the government to come up with an agriculture cabinet,” Tikait said.“There is no law on minimum support price (MSP) yet, but the godowns (corporate) have come up beforehand. The price of the crop will be decided on the basis of people’s hunger and this will affect the poor and the shopkeepers. There is a new trend of ‘bhook ka vyapar’ (business of hunger). We have to stop this, otherwise even dogs will die of hunger,” he added.“They will try to divide us (on the basis of caste, economic status and even on the regional basis), but you must stay strong. It is for the first time that the Sikhs have come with us and we will stay with them. We have got strong groups from Punjab and we have learnt a lot from them. It is a strong bond. It is high time that farmers from different states start meeting each other,” Tikait said.The protest, which primarily started as a farmers’ protest has now become a ‘Jan Andolan’ (public movement), he said.“It is because the prices are on the rise, and even the fuel rate is on the higher side. This will also affect the common people. People have been supporting us, and we are raising their issues as well,” Tikait said on Monday.Recently, questions were raised about the dip in the number of protesters at the UP Gate, which saw a massive surge ahead of the tractor rally on Republic Day (January 26) and following Tikait’s emotional appeal to the people to bring food and water for him on January 28.The farmers have been camping at the protest site near Uttar Pradesh Gate since November 28, 2020, demanding repeal of the farm laws, and a new law on minimum support price (MSP). As part of an offer, the Centre had proposed staying the implementation of the three controversial farm laws for one and half years. However, there’s a stalemate between the farmers and the central government continues, with no talks held since January 22.

Hindustan Times

16-02-2021

Noida