
In the run-up to critical deliberations with the Centre, farm bodies protesting at Punjab’s border points with Haryana are likely to hold their third round of unity talks on February 12. The session, likely to be held in Chandigarh, will be attended by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), a pan-India umbrella group of farmer unions that spearheaded the year-long 2020-21 agitation against the now-repealed central farm laws.
Raminder Singh Patiala, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha leader, said that the meeting will act as a platform where all the protesting farm groups can align their strategies. The unity talks will take place just two days before the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) and Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) are scheduled to engage with the Centre on their longstanding demands.
Related, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha on Friday unanimously rejected the Central Government’s National Policy Framework for Agricultural Marketing, terming it a “reincarnation” of the contentious three farm laws that were repealed in 2021. The framework was seen as an attempt to push through the provisions of the scrapped laws via state governments.
The decision came after a meeting of HKS Surjeet Bhawan, which included 165 delegates from 73 farmer organisations that represented 12 states. The general body of the SKM was strongly opposing the policy framework as it compromises the interest of farmers.
While the main issue of current protesting farmer unions – debt waiver, MSP- assuring law has emerged, it was SKM’s leaders themselves, who mentioned in a note of concern on Saturday that it seems to be most important. For that, as mentioned by these union leaders, central farm laws renumbered – contain provisions the organisations continue to fight against.
Earlier, two rounds of deliberation among farmer groupings had made no headway in evolving any common strategy from their joint protest towards the Centre. Despite the difficulties in concerted action, farmer leaders are to present a united forum in their interactions with the centre in the negotiations ahead.
Concurrently, there is Jagjit Singh Dallewal, yet another leading farming leader who also completed 60 days of the indefinite fast under way. He refused the Supreme Court’s proposal to undergo a medical check-up at Chandigarh’s PGI on health grounds. However, officials from the local administration, including Deputy Commissioner Priya Yadav and SSP Nanak Singh, met him at the protest site to determine his well-being. According to the SSP, Dallewal’s condition seems to have improved since he started receiving medical assistance on January 19.
The ongoing protests express the deep frustrations and concerns of the farming community, which refuses to budge for greater protection for farmer rights and more effective policies for agriculture. As talks scheduled for February 14 with the Centre approach, the farm bodies look forward to real discussions that settle the issues still unresolved.
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