CENTRE READY TO PUT FARM LAWS ON HOLD FOR 18 MONTHS

Clearly on the back foot – jittery over the proposed tractor march scheduled for the Republic Day -- Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said on Wednesday that Centre is willing to put on hold new farm laws for one to one-and-a-half years and will convey it to the Supreme Court in an affidavit.

Tomar noted that the unions have taken the proposal "very seriously" and will revert to the government with their feedback.

During the period the contentious farm laws are in deep freeze, a committee will go into the gamut of the three legislations, as well as look at the other demands put forth by the farmers. "The government has proposed that until the committee completes the review, all the three laws will be put on hold for one-anda-half-year," Balkishan Singh Brar of the All India Kisan Sabha was cited as saying by NDTV.

‘‘I am happy that farmer unions have taken this proposal very seriously and said that they would consider it and convey their decision on January 22," Tomar said. ‘‘I feel that talks are progressing in the right direction and there is a possibility of finding a solution on January 22," the minister added.

The farm laws were also put on hold for at least two months by the Apex Court in an order last week. The court had even set up a special committee to discuss the issue with all stakeholders, giving it two months to submit a report.

The farmers, however, had not accepted the committee, saying all four of its members are pro-government. One of the members had also stepped down.