Farmers from Punjab and Haryana have called off their strike after meeting with Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit and Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya. The strike was called by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of over forty Indian farmers’ organizations, to mark the third anniversary of the Delhi Chalo march against the three controversial farm laws brought in by the Modi government.
The farmers had been protesting near Airport Road in Mohali since November 26, demanding a law guaranteeing minimum support price (MSP) on all crops, implementation of the Swaminathan panel recommendations on MSP, agricultural loan waiver scheme, monthly pension of Rs 10,000 to farmers above 60 years of age and compensation for the kin of farmers who died during protests, among others.
During their meeting with the Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit, the farmers presented their demands and requested him to convey them to the central government. The Governor assured the farmers that he would do everything in his power to help them get their demands met.
Earlier, the Punjab farmer leaders met Punjab Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian where it was decided that the farmers will submit a memorandum to the government on December 4 listing all their demands.
It has also been announced that there will be a meeting of farmers with Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann on December 19th where all the officers of the concerned departments will be present. The farmers’ demands will be heard and actions will be taken to resolve them.
In a separate meeting with Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, the farmers of Haryana also announced the end of their strike. They said that they would wait until December 11 to see how the central government responds to their demands. If the government does not take any action, they will start agitating again.
Under the banner of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), about 15 farmer organizations are participating in the protest. Some of the main organizations include the Haryana Kisan Manch, BKU Tikait, Jai Kisan Andolan, All India Kisan Sabha, Sugarcane Kisan Sangharsh Samiti, Bharatiya Kisan Sangharsh Samiti, All India Kisan Mahasabha, Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Sangh, Bharatiya Kisan Panchayat, and Bharatiya Kisan Union.
