Page 2 - Farmers Issues

Farmer activist Navdeep Singh walks out of Ambala jail after getting bail

Farmer activist Navdeep Singh walked out of Ambala Central Jail after the Punjab and Haryana High Court granted him bail in a case registered in connection with farmers' February 13 'Delhi Chalo' march. He was arrested by Haryana Police from Mohali on March 28 on various charges, including rioting and attempt to murder. Singh was welcomed by farmer leaders as he walked out of jail late on Tuesday night. Earlier, farmer leaders had said that they would gherao the office of the Ambala superintendent of police on Wednesday and Thursday to protest against Singh's arrest. However, they changed the plan after his release. Singh, a native of Jalbera village near Ambala, became famous as the "water cannon man" for climbing atop a police water cannon in November 2020 during the farmers' agitation against the now-repealed farm laws. On February 13, farmers from Punjab led by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha began a march to Delhi to press their demands,

Farmers in India face income decline amid rising costs: Madhura Swaminathan

The professor advocated for raising subsidies to support a diversified food basket, necessary for achieving a balanced diet for the Indian population

HADP a game-changer for J&K's agriculture, allied sectors: LG Manoj Sinha

The Holistic Agriculture Development Program (HADP) is a game-changer for Jammu and Kashmir's agriculture and allied sector that could address challenges faced by farmers, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha said. Sinha made the remarks after inaugurating the Litchi Festival and an agriculture exhibition organised by the horticulture department here on Sunday. Addressing a gathering at the event, "HADP has emerged as the game-changer for J&K's agriculture and allied sector. Twenty-nine projects of HADP hold the potential to address the challenges faced by farmers and it will diversify income sources." He said the unique initiative is a commitment of his administration towards farmers' welfare and determination to explore new avenues for their prosperity. Sinha said progressive reforms and policies of the administration are being implemented to tap the potential of agriculture and horticulture sectors in the Union territory. He extended his felicitations to all the stakeholders and ...

Lok Sabha polls: Farmers may decide strike rate in Punjab powerplay

BJP candidates across the state facing repercussions of the two farmers' protests

LS polls: Cong slams BJP for not fulfilling promises made to farmers

The Congress on Thursday hit out at the BJP for not fulfilling the promises made to farmers' organisations and asserted that an INDIA bloc government will implement all its guarantees to the tillers, including the legal guarantee of MSP. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh noted that elections have been held in 428 constituencies and now polling on 115 seats, including those in Punjab and Haryana, are left. In a video statement on X, he said the farmers' movement has been going on in Haryana and Punjab since five years and though the government took back the "three black farm laws", it has "not fulfilled the promises" it made to farmer organisations "For the last five years, the Modi government has continuously ignored the farmers' movement of Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. Atrocities were committed against the farmers. Now they are talking about snatching the MSP from the farmers of Punjab and Haryana for burning stubble," Ramesh said and asserted that the Congress strongl

Pluckk closes FY24 with a significant milestone, clocks AAR of Rs 100 crore

Pluckk is connecting farmers to half a million homes and delivering over 2 million products every month, said CFO Nelson D'Souza

Protesting TN farmers try climbing mobile tower in Delhi's Jantar Mantar

Few farmers from Tamil Nadu, including a woman, on Wednesday tried to climb onto a mobile tower as they protested at Delhi's Jantar Mantar over demands of better prices for their crops and the river interlinking issue, officials said. Scores of Tamil Nadu farmers gathered at Jantar Mantar, some of who tried to climb nearby trees and a mobile tower, police said. Police used a fire brigade crane to bring one of the protesting farmers back to the ground from the mobile tower, they said. "Around 50 people have come for interlinking of rivers. Two of them tried climbing a mobile tower but they returned back to the ground," Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Devesh Kumar Mahla said, adding that some of them tried climbing trees at the site. Protesting farmers said around 100 farmers from Tamil Nadu participated in the demonstration. The farmers said they are demanding a doubling of their income from farm produce, a pension of Rs 5,000, individual insurance, and interlinking of all

54 trains on Ambala-Amritsar route cancelled as farmers protest continues

A total of 54 trains on the Ambala-Amritsar route were cancelled on Saturday as farmers squatted on tracks at the Shambhu railway station in Punjab's Patiala district for the fourth day, officials said. The protestors have been demanding the release of three farmers arrested by the Haryana Police during the ongoing stir. As many as 54 trains were cancelled on Saturday because of the farmers' protest, railway officials said. The protest has affected the movement of 380 trains in the last three days, causing inconvenience to passengers, they added. The farmers have been protesting under the banner of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) in Patiala district's Shambhu. They began their protest for the release of arrested farmers on Wednesday by squatting on the tracks on the Ambala-Ludhiana-Amritsar route in Shambhu near the Punjab-Haryana border. Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said the protest will continue until the three farmers are released

Farmers' protest continues at Shambhu railway station; more trains affected

Farmers under the banner of the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha continued to sit on a rail track in Patiala district near the Punjab-Haryana border on Thursday, demanding release of three farmers arrested by the Haryana Police. With their protest continuing, the railway authorities, under the Ambala railway division, on Thursday said 53 more trains were cancelled, 12 were short-terminated and 23 were diverted. The disruption in rail movement was causing inconvenience to rail passengers. Farmers are demanding the release of three fellow farmers, including Navdeep Singh, who were arrested by the Haryana Police during the ongoing stir. They have said they will not end their protest until their fellow protesters are released. Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said their protest was going on. Ambala railway division, senior divisional commercial manager, Naveen Kumar said the movement of many trains have been affected because of the farmers' protest at

Mechanisation and digitisation: Uttar Pradesh farmers eye rich harvest

From drones to laser levellers, farmers in UP are increasingly adopting technology, Aditi Phadnis reports from the fields of Mohanlalgunj, near Lucknow

Govt to procure selected crops at MSP if farmers opt for diversification

The government is planning to undertake guaranteed procurement of pulses -- tur, urad and masoor -- and maize at MSP from farmers if they opt for diversification from paddy crop, sources said. The Centre also mulling procuring cotton at minimum support price (MSP) without any condition of diversification, they said. The government agencies like NAFED and NCCF may enter into contracts with farmers for five years, official sources said. According to sources, the government could consider procurement of pulses, maize and cotton at MSP without any quantative restrictions, in case the farmers opt to move away from the water-guzzling paddy crop. A portal is being created by the Food and Consumer Affairs Ministry where farmers can register by providing details like their Aadhaar Card number. In the portal, farmers will have to self-certify and mention diversification into these pulses and maize crops. Last month, a panel of three Union ministers proposed buying of these five crops by ...

Farmer leaders will see reason, call off protest, says Piyush Goyal

Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday said that the Modi government is committed to the welfare of farmers and exuded confidence that the farmer leaders will see reason and call off their protest. Food Minister Goyal, along with Union Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda, and Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai have held four rounds of talks with the farmers' group who are seeking a legal guarantee on MSP (minimum support price). He said that the government always support farmers and it stands by them. "Please don't get misled by the propaganda of some people. This government is committed to the interest of farmers and we are totally committed to a bright future for every farmer." The minister said that he along with the agriculture minister and the Minister of State for Home Affairs had suggested to the farmer leaders on how the government can work with them for a better future for the farming community and to help the country become self-reliant. "I am confident that th

SC calls farmers' protest serious, says don't file petitions for publicity

Issues related to farmers' protest are "serious", the Supreme Court said on Monday and asked a litigant to desist from filing petitions based only on newspaper reports for publicity. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and KV Viswanathan, allowed petitioner Agnostos Theos, the Managing Director of the Sikh Chamber of Commerce, to withdraw his plea that alleged violation of the rights of the "peacefully protesting" farmers by the Centre and some states. A request for withdrawal of the plea was made at the very start of the hearing by a counsel for Theos who said he intended to amend the petition. "These are very serious issues. Don't file these petitions based only on newspapers reports for publicity purposes. Only those persons who are serious and committed should file these petitions. If you have gone through the newspaper reports, then you must be aware that the high court is seized of the matter," Justice Kant told the counsel. The bench said the petitioner must know that the high co

Maharashtra govt working towards doubling income of farmers: CM Shinde

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday said the state government has implemented various schemes for farmers aimed at doubling their income. Addressing a gathering at the inauguration of Balasaheb Thackeray Shetkari Training Centre in Washim, Shinde said the government has always stood behind agriculturists during drought, excess rain, and other issues. Notably, Washim is one of the districts in the Vidarbha region known as the country's largest cotton-growing belt. "The Mahayuti government was formed inspired by the ideology of Balasaheb Thackeray. We have provided financial assistance totalling Rs 35,000 crore to farmers in the last 17 to 24 months," he said. In a first, the government has provided crop insurance to farmers by paying only Rs 1, said Shinde who became the chief minister in June 2022 after toppling the Maha Vikas Aghadi government. "The government has launched various schemes for farmers and aims at doubling their income," he added. The Shetkari Bhava

LS Polls: BJP seeks to woo farmers, poor under GYAN campaign in UP

The BJP in Uttar Pradesh will be seeking to increase its vote count through its campaign GYAN Ghareeb, Youth, Annadata, Nari by taking its work among the young, poor and farmers, and women. The campaign has been forged in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call to party workers in the state to increase the vote count in each booth by 370 votes a cue to remind people that it was the BJP government which enabled the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. Modi had earlier in February claimed that BJP will cross the 400-mark in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. There are more than 1.60 lakh booths in the state with an average of 950 voters registered in each of them. According to Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, about 15.29 crore people are expected to exercise their franchise in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh. According to BJP's election strategists, if each booth increases its vote count by 370, it will amount to 6 crore more votes for the ..

Delhi Chalo protest: Farmers plan to march to Delhi on Wednesday

Farm union leaders are seeking guarantees of state support or a minimum purchase price for farmers' produce

Need for farmers to adopt best practices, technologies: UP Dy CM Pathak

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak on Sunday said that there was a need for the farmers to adopt best practices and technologies, and avail benefits of the government schemes. Pathak said this wile addressing an event organised by the Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA) to present innovative Farmer Awards 2024 at the Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research institute here as part of the Uttar Pradesh AgroTech 2024 event. The deputy chief minister said recognising the farmers for their outstanding work will encourage more of them for grater innovations in agriculture. "Our government is fully committed to empowering farmers with technology and marketing support," Pathak said. "There is a need for the farmers to adopt best practices and technologies and avail the benefits of the flagship programmes and schemes launched by the state government," he added. Pathak said Uttar Pradesh is leading in the production of different commodities such as wheat, sugarcane,

Protection for Indian farmers, fishermen ensured at WTO MC 13: Piyush Goyal

Emphasisng the importance of securing their well-being, Goyal stated, "I think that India has successfully delivered on the issues that were our role and has achieved the outcomes that we expected"

Haryana Samyukta Kisan Morcha to hold large gathering in Delhi on March 14

Haryana farmers have formed HSKM, which includes the different 18 outfits of the state

Govt open for talks with farmers, solution needs to be found: Arjun Munda

The government is open for talks with protesting farmers but no meeting has been fixed as yet, Union Agriculture Minister Arjun Munda on Wednesday said, adding that a solution needs to be found soon. The minister was speaking on the sidelines of the 95th Annual General Meeting of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) Society. When asked about plan to hold the next round of talks with the farmer groups, Munda said, "nothing as of now". However, he said that talks will be held as a solution need to be found. The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) are spearheading the 'Delhi Chalo' march to press the government to accept their demands, including a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP) for crops and farm loan waiver. In the fourth round of talks with the farmer leaders on Februray 18, a panel of three Union ministers proposed that government agencies would buy pulses, maize and cotton at the MSP for five years after entering