Farmers Movement Archive

We are prepared to stay at Delhi border for six months: farmers

Thousands of farmers dug in their heels at the Singhu border between Delhi and Haryana on Saturday, deciding to stay put and not move to the Burari ground to ensure that their movement against the Centre’s new farm laws does not die down. “We are fully prepared to stay here for six months and can stay longer if we are not heard and our demands are not met,” said Dilbag Singh, 25, a farmer from Karnal. He added that every truck standing by for the protest had rations and other necessary items for the period. Sacks of flour, pulses and potatoes were stacked up inside a truck; a stove was placed outside along with huge utensils; piles of mattresses lay inside the vehicle and outside. There were also charging points and extra batteries available for mobile phones. Water tankers have been installed at regular intervals and langar provisions have also been made by the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee for the protesters. “We will not go to the Nirankari ground in Burari because once we go there, we’ll just sit there for days and nothing will happen. Here, the border is locked and it’s making an impact,” Harvinder Singh, 24, said. Pandemic vs livelihood While COVID-19 precautionary measures, including wearing masks and maintaining distance, have taken a back seat, the farmers said they were not scared of the pandemic in the face of the threat to their livelihood. “One, it didn’t happen to us for the past two months when we were protesting in Punjab, why would it happen to us now [COVID-19]? Second, our bodies are immune to all diseases because of the way we are brought up. Thirdly, if these laws are not revoked, we will anyway die because we will be exploited at the hands of corporates,” said Raghuveer Singh, 50, from Moga Punjab, who is associated with the Bharti Kisan Krantikari Sangh.

The Hindu

2020-11-29

November 29 2020 00:00 IST