Chandigarh, September 15
The state’s farmer agitators warned on Tuesday that any Punjab MP who supports agricultural bills in parliament will not be allowed into villages as they blocked roads in many places as part of their state protest.
Protesting farmers occupied highways and other key highways for two hours in various parts of the state against the three bills that called them “anti-farmers.” Travelers faced inconvenience due to roadblocks while authorities diverted traffic.
The Center on Monday introduced bills on food and agriculture reform in Lok Sabha. The proposed legislation seeks to provide barrier-free trade for farmers’ agricultural products outside of notified agricultural mandi and to empower farmers to enter into agricultural agreements with private agents prior to production for sale of agricultural products.
Intensifying their agitation, the peasants said they were forced to take to the streets due to the apathetic attitude of the central government to their demand for the withdrawal of the bills.
Different groups of farmers had called for road blocks in Punjab to protest against the bills.
“MPs who support these agricultural bills in parliament will not be allowed to enter the villages and we will teach them a lesson,” warned Bhartiya Kisan (Lakhowal) Union Secretary General Harinder Singh Lakhowal.
Calling the bills “worse than coronavirus,” he said they would negatively affect farmers, arthiyas (commission agents) and farm workers, if implemented.
Lakhowal, who was agitating together with other farmers on the Neelon Bridge in Ludhiana, said that they needed the support of each MP as the central government was “hell-bent on bringing the bills that go against the interests of the community. agricultural.
Lakhowal said his team, along with 11 other farmers’ organizations, blocked roads, mainly national highways, in 25 places in the state.
“We will do everything possible to force the government to roll back the bills,” he said, adding that a group of farmers would also hold a protest in Delhi.
Meanwhile, in Moga, some of the agitated farmers wore black robes while some of them tied a rope around their necks.
Farmers under the BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) flag held protests in Badal village in Muktsar and in Patiala, while in Phagwara they blocked National Highway 1 for two hours between the Phagwara-Hoshiarpur sugar mill crossing and the crossing of the Phagwara-Nakodar highway.
As a result, traffic between Jalandhar-Phagwara-Ludhiana, Phagwara-Nakodar and Phagwara-Nawanshahr-Chandigarh was blocked, causing inconvenience to travelers.
Farmers also held a demonstration at a lock grain market in Phagwara.
Led by the president of BKU (Doaba), Manjit Singh Rai, the farmers raised slogans against the government and demanded the withdrawal of the bills. The protest was also joined by commissioners and mandi workers.
In Hoshiarpur, farmers under the banner of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee organized a protest dharna and blocked vehicular traffic in Bhangla on Jalandhar-Pathankot GT Road.
Meanwhile, Tanda police on Tuesday registered a case against members of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee for blocking the road at the Beas River Bridge, Rara village, on the Tanda-Sri Hargobindpur road.
On Monday, the draft Law on Trade in Agricultural Products and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation), the Farmers Agreement (Empowerment and Protection) on Price Guarantee and Agricultural Services and the Draft Law on Essential Products (Amendment ).
Farmers have expressed their fear that they would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system and would be at the “mercy” of large corporations.
The congressional-led government in Punjab described the bills as a “flagrant attack” on the federal structure. On August 28, the Punjab Assembly had passed a resolution rejecting the agricultural bills. – PTI
