The Center had invited protesting farmers to the sixth round of talks and asked them to set a date at their convenience. The farmers, in their meeting on Wednesday, decided they would not set a date because they did not agree with the proposals sent by the agriculture minister. With this, the ongoing protest enters its 29th day on Thursday with no immediate solution in sight. However, for the first time, farmers have raised the demand for a higher minimum support price than the existing one, as the Center has been reiterating its commitment to the MSP system.
Here are the latest updates from the protest.
1. A date for further talks has not been decided, but farmers have said they are not averse to talks. They are waiting for the government to come to the table with an open mind. “If the Center takes one step, the farmers will take two,” they said.
2. The protesters have raised the demand for a higher MSP in their letter to the Center. “We ask the government that instead of repeating its proposals and amendments, offer something concrete in writing so that we can make that the basis of our agenda to resume the dialogue process,” the letter said.
Also read: Farmers unions say no date for talks until government redraws terms
3. The MSP issue is at the center of the current crisis. The new agricultural laws do not mention the MSP system in which the government buys the products of the farmers at a minimum price that provides a cushion for the farmers. The Center reiterated that the system is not ending. The ministry also agreed to amend the laws to clarify the MSP. But the farmers have said they don’t want amendments, they want a complete removal of the laws.
Four. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his recent virtual address to Madhya Pradesh farmers, told how the government increased the MSP from what it was before 2014. However, protesting farmers do not agree with the MSP’s claim of the government. Bharatiya Kisan Union spokesman Rakesh Tikait had previously said that farmers are not receiving their prices, which is leading to suicide incidents. Senior farmer leader Darshan Pal said Tuesday that although the government sets the MSP for 23 commodities, it mainly buys wheat and rice at these prices.
5. The farmers, in their letter, have also mentioned that they do not deserve to be treated as political rivals. Several Union ministers claimed that the Maoists had hijacked the protest. Farmers will have to intensify their agitation if the government continues to treat them that way, the letter said.
6. As for the ongoing protests, more and more farmers are likely to join the protest sites on the Delhi border in the coming days. The Kisan Sena Farmers Union said thousands of its members from western Uttar Pradesh will march to Delhi on Thursday.
7. The Farmers Collective’s social media cell previously announced that they would hold a webinar on Thursday in which veteran farmers will respond to queries related to the ongoing protest.
8. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will release the next installment of Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi on December 25. The prime minister will also interact with farmers from six states.
9. Union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar said Wednesday that the solution can only be reached through dialogue. “History is witness to this fact. No matter how old and strong the protest is, the end and the solution of a protest is only reached through dialogue, ”he said.
10. Meanwhile, the Haryana police have registered a case against 13 farmers on various charges including attempted murder and rioting after the convoy of Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar was allegedly blocked and attacked in Ambala on Tuesday.
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