Farmers Movement Archive

Farmers’ protest: Now, a library-cultural centre comes up at Singhu border

A group of young, working professionals, students, and farmers from Punjab and Haryana has set up a cultural space-cum-library at Singhu border to serve as a platform for artists as well as engage with the street children around the area amid the farmers’ protest.On Tuesday afternoon, a day after they set up the Sahitya Chaupal near the Kessel Grand Mall at the protest site, several children were huddled around a volunteer in the 30 x 30 feet enclosure, sketching. Few others were busy reading. At another enclosure, set up by the same group, children were doing basic arithmetic.“We saw these children moving around from one langar to another, collecting food, playing among themselves. So we thought we could engage them in drawing or just conduct regular activities for them,” said Sonu Chahal, who has pursued his postgraduate degree in music and hails from Manochahal village in the Tarn Taran district of Punjab.Also read | Farm unions slam Centre, say govt lacks sympathyChahal is among nearly a dozen organisers and around 40 volunteers who have set up the initiative. The larger enclosure, near the Kessel Grand Mall, was set up on Monday by Navdeep Singh -- the young farmer who became an internet sensation after turning off a water cannon during the agitation in Haryana last month.“There are a lot of young farmers who have gathered around the area and they speak their minds. So, we wanted to create a space for reading, discussion and engage the younger generation here in a constructive manner,” he said. When asked if he knew the organisers from earlier, Singh said, “No. Most of us came together on this protest site and only had one or two acquaintances here. Since we share the same idea, we’re all working on this project.”His friend and fellow organiser Gurinder Singh said, “We wanted to create literary chaupals (community space) where people could come, read, and have a dialogue on issues.” Singh, who hails from Patiala and has a postgraduate degree in business administration (MBA), said, “The titles present at the library include a biography on Fidel Castro in Punjabi, Paash’s poetry, books by writers like Arundhati Roy and Khushwant Singh as well as journalist Ravish Kumar.”The team has also created a WhatsApp group and has asked people to donate whatever books they want to so that those can also be added to the library. “We want our elderly protesters to have a space to read and rest and discuss, like we do back home,” said Singh, pointing towards a farmer who slept in the enclosure with a book by his side on Tuesday afternoon. The group will also be holding regular poetry and song sessions inviting artists, musicians, poets, and filmmakers to share their work.“From the looks of it, the protest will continue for a long time. The chaupal is an attempt to maintain discipline here and hold meaningful conversations among the young people,” said Dinesh Chaddha, a lawyer from Barwa village in Ropat.Several other makeshift libraries have been set up at the spot since the earlier days of the agitation. However, this is the first time a group of young professionals is bringing in diverse forms of art like music and poetry into the mix.

Hindustan Times

16-12-2020

Delhi