AGENCIES
Farmers’ unions today rejected the fresh draft proposal by the Centre and said that they would continue their struggle against the three contentious farm laws.
Farmers’ union received a proposal from the Union government and held a meeting at Singhu border to analyse the proposal.
The united forum of farmer leaders rejected the amendment proposal of the Union government. The leaders now have decided to intensify their protest.
Announcing the plans of the farmer unions after a meeting this evening, farmer leader Dr Darshanpal said, “We will block the Delhi-Jaipur highway by December 12. We will sit on dharna at all the toll plazas of country on December 12. We have called for a nationwide protest on 14th. We have asked the people to protest against every MP and MLA of the BJP”.
In the proposal sent earlier to 13 agitating farmer unions, the Centre promised a written assurance for minimum support prices, allowing farmers to go to court to resolve disputes instead of a sub-divisional magistrate and scrapping of the Electricity Amendment bill, which they opposed.
The government also offered to make amendments in the laws to address the concerns of farmers in various areas. To allay fears that big corporates will take over farmlands, the government said it can be clarified that no buyer can take loans against farmland nor any such condition will be made to farmers.
Amendments can also be made so that state governments can register the traders operating outside mandis. States can also impose tax and cess as they used in the APMC (Agricultural Produce Market Committee) mandis on them.
With the Centre-farmer talks ending in a stalemate, thousands of farmers stayed put at Delhi borders on Wednesday to press for repeal of the agri marketing laws.
The farmer leaders announced to seal Jaipur-Delhi and Jaipur-Agra highways till December 12.
The nationwide protest at district level is scheduled for December 14.
During the nationwide protest, farmers will protest and gheroed the BJP offices.
The unions have also decided to boycott Ambani and Adani products, JIO mobile and petrol pumps owned by Reliance.
A meeting called by Home Minister Amit Shah ended in failure on Tuesday night as farmer leaders rejected the government’s offer to amend new farm laws, saying they would settle for nothing less than the scrapping of the legislations.
The sixth round of talks between the government and farmer unions to end the protests on Delhi’s various borders, which was scheduled on Wednesday, has been cancelled.
This comes after many farm leaders had threatened to boycott the talks.
As the protests continued, traffic was disrupted at border points with farmers agitating on the Singhu, TIkri and Ghazipur borders of Delhi.
Taking to Twitter, the Delhi Traffic Police alerted commuters about that the Tikri, Jharoda, Dhansa Borders are closed for any traffic movement. However, Jhatikara border is open only for two-wheelers and pedestrian movement.
It also said that those travelling to Haryana can take Daurala, Kapashera, Badusarai, Rajokri NH 8, Bijwasan/Bajghera, Palam Vihar and Dundahera Borders.