Angry farmers, on the road for 13 days, say they have left behind produce, farms and cattle to protest in Delhi as they are unhappy with Modi government.
New Delhi: Over the past 13 days, protesting Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) farmers, who are at Delhi’s doorstep, have slept on the road, met Yoga guru Ramdev, cooked in makeshift kitchens and eaten food offered by locals along the way.
The farmers, who began their march from Tikait Ghat in Haridwar, which is dedicated to their founder Mahendra Singh Tikait, reached the outskirts of the national capital Monday night. They have now been prevented from entering Delhi.
“We started our march on 23 September after taking blessings of our great leader,” said Brijpal Singh, a protesting farmer from Amroha in Uttar Pradesh.
“Along the way, we stayed at various places, including at the Patanjali ashram where we met Baba Ramdev. He has extended support. He told us that if the government can waive of loans for corporates, it is bound to do it for us.”
Singh says the farmers have been on the road leaving behind their produce, farms, cattle and families, as they are unhappy with the Modi government.
“Rajnath Singh came to Amroha in 2013 and asked us to vote for the BJP. He said that a Modi government would do whatever it can to support farmers. But they have done nothing,” he said.
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While the farmers have rallied around current BKU leader Naresh Singh Tikait, their reverence is also reserved for his father, the organisation’s founder Mahendra Singh Tikait. The older Tikait famously brought the national capital to a standstill for a week, 30 years ago, forcing the then Rajiv Gandhi government to accept all of his demands.
On Tuesday, the crowd sported T-shirts that bore the portraits of both Tikaits as chants of “Tikait Zindabad” and “Kisan Ekta Zindabad” echoed the streets along National Highway 24.
A list of demands
The farmers’ demand range from implementation of Swaminathan report, cut in fuel and electricity prices, to the overturning of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) ban on diesel vehicles older than 10 years.
With many of the protesters hailing from Uttar Pradesh, they want the government to clear pending sugarcane dues. The farmers say that in UP alone, the dues remain at Rs 10,000 crore, three months after the sugarcane season has ended.
The presence of old tractors and vehicles in the rally, the farmers say, is to protest the NGT ban on older diesel vehicles.
“Either the NGT should lift the ban on old vehicles or the government should provide monetary compensation to farmers to buy new tractors,” said Naresh Singh Tikait.
The massive increase in fuel prices has also become a major concern in the agriculture sector, with farmers saying that the high prices have almost negated any gains that they made because of the new MSP regime on crops established by the government.
The farmers are also demanding pension for those who are above 60.
“Once a farmer is above 60 and not able to work, how will he ensure a steady income? The government should ensure a pension scheme for such farmers,” Tikait added.
Another consistent demand is the implementation of the Swaminathan recommendations, which calls for crop MSP to be at least 50 per cent over the weighted average cost of production. In its 2014 election manifesto, the BJP had promised to implement the recommendations but no action has been taken so far.
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