Farmer’s Protest: On February 13, some 200 farmer groups mostly from Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh aspire to march into New Delhi. They seek legislation that would guarantee their crops a Minimum Support Price. When they ceased their protests in 2021, this was one of the things they requested.
Punjab’s farmers unions are preparing for a comeback as political parties prepare for the Lok Sabha elections, having successfully pushed the government to repeal three agricultural rules in 2021 after a year-long protest at Delhi’s gates. A sizable group of farmers from Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh are anticipated to march towards the National Capital on February 13th as part of the About 200 farmer unions are coordinating the “Delhi Chalo March.”
A number of traffic blockages have been announced by the Delhi police for Monday and Tuesday as part of their preparations. To prevent any issues and maintain order, they are also enforcing regulations. In order to prevent any problems before to the farmers’ protest, they have implemented Section 144 of the legislation along the borders with Uttar Pradesh.
Along the state’s border with Punjab, the Haryana government erected concrete blockades and barbed wire to obstruct the enraged farmers’ intended march.
Farmer’s Protest: Why Farmers Are Protesting Again?
The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have declared a “Delhi Chalo” march including more than 200 farmers’ unions on February 13, according to the PTI news agency. They want the government to accede to a number of their requests.
As stated by the Indian Express, Sarwan Singh Pandher, the KMM coordinator, “Thousands of tractors will march from different parts of Punjab, reaching halfway by Monday afternoon.” Depending on how the negotiations go, farmers will spend the night sleeping in their tractors by the side of the road and then go towards Delhi.”
In reference to the quantity of tractors coming from Punjab, he predicted that there will be thousands of them. You can only speculate as to how many farmers from Punjab are taking part when you also take into account that more than 1,000 tractors are traveling from Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.”
In 2020, a large number of farmers—mostly from Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh—protested three agricultural laws for an entire year. At the entry points to Delhi, namely Singhu, Tikri, and Ghazipur, they staged protests. The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Guarantee and Farm Services Act, the Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act were the names of these laws.
Leaders of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) in Lakhowal declared their intention to stay away from the Tuesday protest. They will, however, take issue if farmers are mistreated while on the march. On February 16, they intend to launch the “Gramin Bharat Bandh” protest.
Farmer’s Protest: What Farmers are Demanding:
- According to reports, the farmers want a law to guarantee a fair price for all their crops, called the Minimum Support Price (MSP). Additionally, they’re asking for all the debts of laborers and farmers to be completely forgiven.
- Bring back the Land Acquisition Act of 2013 across the country, ensuring that farmers receive compensation four times the collector rate and their signed consent before any acquisition.
- Ensure that the farmers who have suffered injustice are given justice, and hold accountable those responsible for the tragic events in Lakhimpur Kheri.
- Stop all free trade agreements, exit the World Trade Organization, and provide pensions to both farm laborers and farmers.
Farmer’s Protest: Union ministers on this Protest
Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher declared that they would be attending a meeting on February 12th to discuss their requests, as requested by the government. On Monday, Piyush Goyal, Arjun Munda, and Nityanand Rai, three ministers, will visit Chandigarh to hold talks with representatives of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political). One day prior to the scheduled farmers’ march, the meeting will be held at the Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration located in Sector 26.
Jagjit Singh Dallewal, the president of Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Sidhupur), mentioned that a group of 26 individuals will participate in this meeting, with an equal split of 13 representatives from both SKM (non-political) and KMM.
On February 8, the three Union ministers and I had our first meeting. The heads of the farmer organizations coordinating the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march were consulted extensively during this conference in order to promote their demands. Among these objectives is the passing of legislation guaranteeing a minimum support price for crops.
Bhagwant Mann, the chief minister of Punjab, who organized the conference in conjunction with the farmer leaders, was also present. Following the meeting, the representatives of the farmers reported that the central ministers had given them the assurance that another round of meetings would be held shortly. According to the farmer leaders, their planned “Delhi Chalo” march on Tuesday was still on.
Farmer’s Protest: Section 144 is Imposed
In 15 of Haryana’s 22 districts, a law known as Section 144 is currently in place to put an end to farmer protests. Groups with five or more members are prohibited by this rule. Additionally, the Sonepat district has reported that gas stations are unable to supply farmer tractors with more than ten liters of diesel due to the “Delhi Chalo” call made by farmer groups.
By enforcing Section 144 at all borders between Delhi and Uttar Pradesh as well as in the surrounding districts, the Delhi Police are also putting an end to gatherings. It has been forbidden for any kind of vehicle, including tractors, buses, trucks, private automobiles, and horses, to transport demonstrators from Uttar Pradesh into Delhi.
Section 144 is enforced for 60 days in Chandigarh and Uttar Pradesh’s Ghazipur, Tikri, and Singhu borders, while farmers might block the Delhi border until their demands are met.
Farmer’s Protest: Makeshift Jails
The Punjab-Haryana borders are being carefully guarded in anticipation of the farmers’ “Delhi Chalo” march; police have built up obstacles and issued directives to keep the peace. At the boundaries of Tikri and Singhu, the Haryana and Delhi police have erected concrete barricades and placed nearby cement blocks and water cannons. Concrete barriers, concrete barriers, road spikes, and thousands of police personnel are all stationed along the interstate border. Prior to the march, the Haryana government also converted two sizable stadiums into makeshift prisons.
Detained farmers would be kept in makeshift cells at Guru Gobind Singh Stadium in Dabwali and Chaudhary Dalbir Singh Indoor Stadium in Sirsa, should the farmers’ march continue. The Haryana government has suspended bulk SMS and mobile internet services in seven districts in addition to enforcing Section 144.
An official order states that mobile internet services in the districts of Ambala, Kurukshetra, Kaithal, Jind, Hisar, Fatehabad, and Sirsa will be suspended from 6 a.m. on February 11 to 23:59 on February 13. This decision was made because of worries that the planned march might disturb the quiet.
The Haryana Police has also issued a traffic advice asking commuters to limit their use of major routes on Tuesday due to anticipated disruptions. In order to lessen the likelihood of traffic congestion, commuters between Chandigarh and Delhi have also been advised to select other routes.
The Delhi Traffic Police issued a warning on Sunday ahead of the farmers’ “Delhi Chalo” march. Car owners are advised to heed this advice in order to stay informed of any traffic restrictions or detours by the police.
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