by Bhupen Goswami 

GUWAHATI : Many young farmers from Punjab have reached the north-eastern state to meet local farmers and make them aware of the new agricultural laws. He said that he arrived here today to inform local farmers about the farmers’ protest in Delhi since November 26, where farmers from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh are participating and who have announced that their protest will continue till the central government repeals the agricultural laws.

Talking to reporters, the farmers of Punjab said that they want to create awareness about agricultural laws and minimum support price (MSP) as many farmers in the country were not aware of it. Manjinder Singh Randhawa from Punjab said that when he met farmers from other states, he came to know that he was not aware of the MSP. “So we are travelling to create awareness about agricultural laws,” he added. Explaining that they respect the Supreme Court and the Constitution of India, the trio insisted that they would not agree with the committee recently set up by the apex court as their demand for repealing agricultural laws rests with the centre. Since the centre had enacted agricultural laws, he said his fight is with the central government.

It may be mentioned that the farmers of Punjab, Haryana have been agitating for 52 days against agricultural laws. But the government is not repealing the laws. The matter is now going on in the Supreme Court. In the same link, the young farmers of Punjab have set up a mission to sensitize the farmers of states in India on the minimum support price (MSP) of agricultural produce and explain why the centre’s new agricultural laws are detrimental to their interest. The agitation against three agricultural laws on the Delhi-Haryana border is continuing. Meanwhile, Manjindra Singh Randhawa (31) from Patiala and Sukhjinder Singh Gill of Ferozepur travelled by his Scorpio train from Chandigarh on 6th January and reached Dimapur in Assam via Bihar, West Bengal and interacted with some farmers. They have made provisions of sleeping inside the vehicle and have placed sleeping bags for those who are willing to be associated with their mission during the tour.

There is also a pot and a stove for cooking on the way during the trip to reduce the cost of travel. The young farmers of Punjab were surprised to learn that the farmers of the North Eastern States, along with some other States, are selling rice from Rs. 700 to Rs. 1,200 per quintal, while in Punjab and Haryana, their counterparts are selling rice for Rs. 1,900. He demanded that MSP be legalized all over the country and APMC should be created in all states across the country to raise the standard of living of farmers.

The visiting farmers said the union government is not ready to repeal agricultural laws and is talking about amendments, which, he stressed, farmers cannot accept. During the meetings with the government, he alleged that the farmers are only harassed and asked to give suggestions for amendment. He also expressed concern that private companies would exploit farmers under the new agricultural laws because they were not entitled to pay any tax. He alleged that under the new laws, farmers will be compelled to sell their produce at a lower price. We are ready to sit in protest by May 2024,” he added. We demand that the three laws be withdrawn and the Government should provide legal guarantee on MSP. The next Lok Sabha elections in the country will be around April-May 2024.