Indian Farmer Union Calls for 1-Day Rural Shutdown Amid Protest

February 16, 2024 Hour: 11:38 am

A pan-India rural shutdown call given by Samyukta Kisan Morcha (United Farmers Front) and supported by Central Trade Unions evoked a partial response on Friday.

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The farmer organization asked for the suspension of all agricultural work for a day and urged village shops, markets and businesses to remain shut. There was a mixed response to the shutdown call, which also saw public transport off the roads at many places in Punjab and Haryana, causing inconvenience to commuters.

Police fired tear gas shells to disperse protesting farmers when they moved towards the barricades at the Shambhu border near Ambala district in Haryana, about 200 km from Delhi. The fresh confrontation comes on the fourth day of the ongoing stand-off.

Scores of farmers with large convoys of tractors embarked on the Delhi march on Tuesday to press for their demands including a minimum support price for crops. The farmers were stopped near the Haryana border and tear-gassed.

Why Farmers and Workers Have Called for Protest on 16th February?

The Central Committee of the CPI(M) had expressed solidarity with the call given by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha and the joint platform of Central Trade Unions for country-wide protest actions on February 16, 2024. pic.twitter.com/4AeGWZtxWD

— CPI (M) (@cpimspeak)
February 15, 2024

On Thursday evening protesting farmers held the third round of talks with three federal government ministers over the issue. Though nothing concrete came out, the two sides were scheduled to meet on Sunday for another round of talks.

“We believe we will all find a solution together peacefully,” Federal Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda said following the culmination of the meeting.

A farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal said the farmers would hold off their march until Sunday.

Meanwhile, farmer leaders said a 63-year-old farmer, who was among the protesters died of a heart attack at the Shambhu border.

The call for Delhi march was given by farmer unions to increase pressure on the federal government to fulfil their demands which also include pensions for farmers and farm labourers, farm debt waiver, withdrawal of police cases, compensation for families of farmers who died during the previous agitation.

��The “Delhi Chalo”, or “Let’s go to Delhi” march has “brought back memories of the chaos” of 2020-21, said Reuters, when millions of farmers united to protest against the introduction of three agriculture laws.

Why are India’s farmers protesting? https://t.co/OKHNl12wQ2

— The Week UK (@TheWeekUK)
February 16, 2024

India’s opposition leaders have also extended support to the protesting farmers and condemned the government’s action to use police force to stop farmers.

In September 2020, the Indian government passed three contentious laws aimed at “modernizing” the country’s agriculture sector. However, farmers feared the new laws would weaken their position and make them dependent on corporates. Seeking revocation of the laws thousands of farmers sat on strike on the borders of the national capital then.

The strike went on for over a year after which Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a surprise address to the nation announced his government was repealing the laws.

Farmers in India form a considerable size of voters. The farmer protests have erupted at a time when India is due to hold general elections this year.

#FromTheSouth News Bits | France: About 10,000 farmers continue for the second consecutive day the blockade of Paris, with the support of about 5 thousand tractors that are used to interrupt the circulation on 8 highways, as a protest to denounce their economic situation. pic.twitter.com/ntgRoFxXCi

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish)
January 31, 2024