
CHANDIGARH: Thousands of farmers on Sunday took out a tractor parade organised by farmer unions including Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) and Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), at multiple locations across Punjab to urge the union government to address farmers' demands.
The demands include legal guarantee on minimum support price (MSP) for crops, a comprehensive loan waiver scheme for farmers and farm workers, no privatisation of electricity, withdrawal of the National Policy Framework on Agriculture Marketing (NPFAM), and debt waiver, among others.
Tractor marches were taken out in Amritsar, Ludhiana, SAS Nagar, Malerkortla besides other districts in Punjab.
Over 100 tractors participated in a five-kilometre march along the Baroudi-Kurali-New Chandigarh-Majri block route by the Lok Hit Mission - Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU).
Farmers in Mohali held a tractor march from Dardi village to district administrative Complex in Sector 76.
The tractor marches were held peacefully, with farmers parking their tractors outside retail outlets and malls to protest against the corporates.
The farmer unions have announced that they will intensify protests, if no decision is made during the next round of talks with the Centre, scheduled for February 14.
"The tractor marches were taken out across Punjab at around 150 places; about four to five places in each district ... while in Haryana, tractor marches were taken out at about two dozen places,’’ said Senior SKM leader Harinder Singh Lakhowal.
Lakhowal drove his tractor from Kharar Toll Plaza to the Tehsil and then at airport road in Mohali and finally from Dera Bassi to Dapar Toll Plaza.
He said that in Mohali alone tractor marches were taken out at three places and in Ludhana at five places.
Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ekta-Ugrahan) president Joginder Singh Ugrahan said that their union organised tractor marches in 18 districts across the state in response to the call by the United Kisan Morcha.
Farmer leader Sukhdev Singh Kokri Kalan said that the tractor marches were organised at the tehsil level, following specified routes to reach designated points.
Kisan Mazdoor Morcha convener Sarwan Singh Pandher said that thousands of tractors participated in a peaceful protest covering nearly 50 toll plazas, 15 corporate silos and around two dozen malls across the state.
"On this day 75 years ago, the Constitution of India was adopted. But the incumbent BJP-led government at the Centre does not respect the voice of farmers and labourers, neither does it accept their demands,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, farmers at Karnal in neighboring Haryana also took out their tractors for the protest march, with several of them hitting the streets of the city.
On the other hand, the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) along with the SKM (Non-Political), which is spearheading the ongoing farmers' protest at Khanauri and Shambhu border points for the past 11 months, also held a protest at different places in the state in which farmers owing allegiance to these outfits parked their tractors outside corporates-owned big shopping malls and silos as part of tractors march call on January 26.
KMM leaders said the protest aimed at showing solidarity with small traders and businessmen who are allegedly being marginalised by the corporate entities.
It was also to express solidarity with farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal.
Notably, a high-level delegation of the Central government, led by joint secretary of the ministry of agriculture, Priya Ranjan, had recently invited SKM (Non-Political) and the KMM for talks to discuss their demands in a meeting to be held on February 14 at Chandigarh.
After this, senior leader of SKM (Non-Political) Jagjit Singh Dallewal took medical aid but he did not end his indefinite fast which he began from November 26 over various demands of farmers.
Meanwhile, a statement issued by SKM on Saturday, had said a six-member committee of the SKM will strive to coordinate actions with the SKM (Non-Political)-KMM "provided there is issue-based unity on the demands, especially on NPFAM".
A coordination meeting with these platforms will be held on February 12 in Chandigarh.
Speaking to reporters in Mohali and Samrala in Punjab on Sunday on the sidelines of tractor marches, senior SKM leader Harinder Singh Lakhowal and Balbir Singh Rajewal warned that if the Centre does not accept their demands, they will be holding a big agitation.
(With inputs from PTI)