Farmers Protest 2024: Union ministers and farmer leaders had met earlier, on February 8, 12 and 15, and now the fourth round of talks is underway.
Chandigarh: A team of government officials sparked off the fourth round of talks with the farmer leaders today. The points of the discussion revolve around the farmer’s demands, which notably feature a legal endorsement for the minimum support price (MSP) on farm products. Notably, there have already been three rounds of talks between the ministers and farm union leaders but all have been inconclusive.
Correspondingly, Agriculture and Farmer Welfare Minister Arjun Munda, Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai reached the Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration in Sector 26, Chandigarh for the talks, as per a report by news agency PTI.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann Joins Meeting
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann also joined the meeting. The union ministers and farmer leaders had met earlier, on February 8, 12 and 15, but the talks remained inconclusive. The meeting comes amid thousands of farmers from Punjab staying put at the Shambhu and Khanauri points of the state’s border with Haryana after their ‘Delhi Chalo’ march was halted by police personnel.
The call for the march was given by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha to press their demands.
Besides a legal guarantee of MSP, the farmers are demanding the implementation of the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendations, pension for farmers and farm labourers, farm debt waiver, no hike in electricity tariff, withdrawal of police cases, “justice” for the victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence, reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act, 2013, and compensation to the families of the farmers who died during a previous agitation in 2020–21.
Demands From Farmer Leaders
Khap leader OP Dhankar said Haryana Khaps are behind the agitation and added that the central government should not delay giving a legal guarantee to MSP. Another Khap leader who attended the meeting said farmers will reach Delhi and protest if the talks fail.
Charuni said it is surprising that the government is not allowing the farmers to travel to Delhi on their tractors. It is a farmer’s vehicle and they need to carry food and other rations for the agitation on the tractors, he said.
Meanwhile, the suspension of Internet services has been extended in certain areas of some Punjab districts, including Patiala, Sangrur and Fatehgarh Sahib, until February 24 on the orders of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs.
Internet Suspension Continues
Earlier, Internet services were suspended from February 12 to 16 in view of the farmers’ “Delhi Chalo” march. The Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) continued to hold protests at toll plazas in Punjab for the second consecutive day, forcing the toll authorities not to charge commuters.
At the Ladhowal plaza in Ludhiana, farmers shouted slogans against the Centre and the Haryana government. On Saturday, farm leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said the entire country is looking to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address the demands and expressed hope that the farmers will get “good news” after Sunday’s meeting.
“Now the ball is in the government’s court,” he said, adding that the Center has a right to take “political” decisions.
The Haryana government extended the ban on mobile Internet and bulk SMS services in seven districts until February 19.
The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha are spearheading the “Delhi Chalo” agitation to put pressure on the Centre for their demands, including a law on MSP for crops and loan waivers.
The farmers from Punjab began their march to Delhi on Tuesday but were stopped by security personnel at the Shambhu and Khanauri points on Punjab’s border with Haryana. The protesters have stayed put at the two border points since then.
(With inputs from agencies)