Chandigarh: With the deadlock among the agitating farmers and the Centre continuing, another group of almost 30,000 protesters from various regions of Punjab began their journey towards the national capital on Friday morning.
Pressed in a huge convoy of tractor-trailers, buses, bikes, and cars loaded with eatables, the farmers, largely belonging to the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, began their journey from Amritsar city.
Enroute farmers belonging to other areas are joining them. They will arrive at the national capital’s Kundli border on Saturday night.
Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee President Satnam Singh Pannu said to IANS: “After a night halt in Shahbad (in Haryana) today, we will head straight to Delhi.”
According to police estimates, the number of protesters could be more than 30,000 with a sizeable number of youths and women.
The farmers generally belonging to Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Jalandhar, Gurdaspur, Kapurthala, and Moga areas.
In the midst of the journey, ‘langar’ or community kitchens have been set up to feed the ranchers.
A huge number of ranchers have already been protesting against the agricultural laws on Delhi borders since November 27 as they feel that these laws would make way for the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them helpless before large corporate entities.
Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU-Rajewal) President Balbir Singh Rajewal said to IANS: “Agriculture and agriculture marketing are state subjects. Hence these laws are unconstitutional and must be repealed. Acceptance to amendments means accepting laws.”
Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday asked the leaders of the farmers’ unions to proceed with the dialogue and find an amicable answer to the issues related to the new agricultural legislation.
Both the Cabinet clergymen were speaking at a press conference in Delhi, a day after the farmers’ unions unanimously declined the offer by the Centre to amend the laws as of late enacted to bring reforms in farming and allied sectors.
As farmers’ unions have begun to quicken their agitation with a call for blocking the expressways around the national capital, the government has requested that they return to the discussion table.
The ministers kept up that the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act 2020, and the Essential Commodities Amendment Act 2020 are the largest agricultural reforms in the nation so far.
