‘Govt Shouldn’t Evade Responsibility’: Farmer Leader A Day Ahead Of ‘Rail Roko’ Protest In Punjab, Haryana

New Delhi: Farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal on Saturday stressed the Centre’s obligation to ensure a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP) on all crops, even as farmers gear up for the proposed ‘rail roko’ protest on March 10 to push for their demands, news agency PTI reported.

Both the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have called for a ‘rail roko’ protest on Sunday in solidarity with their various demands.

Refuting reports, Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) leader Dallewal dismissed the Centre’s proposal for guaranteed procurement of pulses (tur, urad, and masoor), maize, and cotton at MSP. He stressed the necessity for farmers to receive MSP on all crops for their sustenance, adhering to the “C2 plus 50 per cent” formula advocated by the Swaminathan Commission.

Dallewal rebuffed claims suggesting that MSP on all crops would entail a significant expenditure, highlighting the government’s hefty spending on importing palm oil worth Rs 1.38 lakh crore while neglecting to allocate funds for farmers through MSP on all crops.

” The government should not run away from its responsibility. To safeguard the nation’s farmers, legislation on MSP is imperative,” he asserted.

Meanwhile, Kisan Mazdoor Morcha leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said that protesting farmers would stage sit-ins on railway tracks at various locations in Punjab, including Ferozepur, Amritsar, Rupnagar, and Gurdaspur districts.

The Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), Bharti Kisan Union (Dakaunda-Dhaner), and the Krantikari Kisan Union, affiliated with the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, are also set to partake in the ‘rail roko’ agitation.

While the Samyukta Kisan Morcha is not directly involved in the “Delhi Chalo” movement, it extends its support to the protesting farmers stationed at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha are at the forefront of the “Delhi Chalo” march, urging the government to accede to farmers’ demands, including a legal guarantee for MSP on all crops.

The protesting farmers have been encamped at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points between Punjab and Haryana since their march to Delhi was halted by security forces. The march commenced on February 13.

During the fourth round of talks with farmer leaders on February 18, a panel of three Union ministers proposed that government agencies would purchase pulses, maize, and cotton at MSP for five years following an agreement with the farmers.

The demands encompass pension for farmers and farm labourers, no hike in electricity tariffs, withdrawal of police cases, justice for victims of the 2021 Lakhimpur Kheri violence, reinstatement of the Land Acquisition Act – 2013, and compensation to families of farmers who died during a previous agitation in 2020-21.