Indian farmers renew protests against new laws

Thousands of farmers in India renewed their protests across the country on Saturday, marking seven months of demonstrations demanding a repeal of three agriculture laws they say favor private businesses at the expense of the growers they buy from.

Some marched toward New Delhi, while others rode tractors from neighboring Uttar Pradesh, chanting the slogan “save agriculture, save democracy.” They were part of a mass gathering called by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Joint Farmers Group), despite fears of a resurgence in COVID-19 cases after a slow recovery from a debilitating second wave in recent months.

“In the last seven months different farm unions, led by Samyukt Kisan Morcha, organized one of the world’s largest and longest protests,” Dr. Darshan Pal, from the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Indian Farmers’ Union), told reporters in the capital. “Thousands have joined in from different parts of the country. We plan to intensify our stir as well.”

In a memorandum addressed to Indian President Ram Nath Kovind, the union complained that three farm laws introduced by the government were “unconstitutional and prepared without the consultations with farmers.”

They also demanded a “minimum

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support price for farm produce” from the government, based on a 2004 report when New Delhi appointed a commission under agricultural scientist Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan to address the growing incidence of suicide among farmers.

In September, amid wide-scale protests from opposition parties and farmers, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) used its majority and passed the three laws in parliament, claiming they would usher in a “new era in farming.”

Farmers say the new laws will leave them at the mercy of corporations as they clear the way for the unregulated entry of private companies into the farming sector.

In a memorandum addressed to Indian President Ram Nath Kovind, the union complained that three farm laws introduced by the government were ‘unconstitutional.’