By Praveen Dwivedi
New Delhi, Feb 7 (IANS): Security has been further beefed up in the last couple of days at Singhu border, however, the agitating farmers remain firm on their demands. Every protesting farmer at Singhu village gives almost the same reply, "We won't go back till the three anti-farmer laws are taken back".
Police barricades that were earlier put up at Singhu village, now have also appeared at Singhola village, which is around one-and-a-half km away from Singhu. Singhu and Singhola, these two Jat-dominated villages of northeast Delhi are located either side of the road - (Delhi-Panipat highway) which is blocked since November 26 due to the farmers' protests.
Scores of farmers from Haryana and Punjab have been protesting at Singhu against three the farm laws passed by Parliament. These three laws are - The Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020 and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, 2020.
In the last one week, IANS spoke to a varied section of people and farmers at the Singhu protest site to get their views about three farm laws they have stood against and about their lives within multi-layer security for the last two months. Though most of them were not well aware of the contentious points of these three farm laws, they have their own stories of struggling as farmers.
A group of farmers from various districts of Haryana sitting with their traditional hookahs in the middle raised their concerns that the new farm rules will end the mandi system and leave them dependent on corporate agents. Mahar Singh Talwandi, an old farmer in the group said, "We are worried that the government will end the mandi system and will give free hands to big companies. The Mandi system helps us to take money in advance and the people associated with the system are also familiar with farmers' issues."
As to how the movement against three farm laws started in Haryana, Devender Singh, another old famer in the group said, "Government's laws are written in English and we old farmers do not know. But, we know farming and its rules. After the Government passed these farm laws, farmers in Haryana started meetings in villages and opposed farm laws. People those who are dependent on farming have reservations against these farms laws." While a middle-aged farmer who has come from Jind district in Haryana, sitting in the group added, "At present, the farmers in Haryana have no work to do on farmland for next two months. We are free and will stay here only."
Young farmers at Singhu would often reply to any query slamming the BJP-run government, especially incidents on January 26 at Red Fort and scuffle due to stone-pelting at a protest site on January 28. They expressed their anger slamming the government for suspending internet services there, putting up barricades, blocking the place they are protesting, arrests of farmers, and many more issues.
"BJP-led government first tried to divide farmers and then made several attempts to derail peaceful farm protests through its partymen. Many of us are students and we are here because of wrong policy (farm laws) by the government. We will not allow corporate companies to snatch our lands. We will fight until these anti-farm laws are repealed," said Sukhvir Singh, one of the farmers in the group.
Satnam Singh, a farmer leader in the group added, "We will not talk with the government till all the farmers are out of jail. No matter how long the government will test farmers, we will sit here and will leave this place only after these three farm laws are taken back."