Food being prepared for protesting farmers at the Tikri border on Thursday.

Tribune News Service
Rohtak, December 3

Farmers from Punjab camping at the Tikri border are fully equipped, as being claimed by them, to carry out the agitation for next several months as they have neither dearth of funds nor shortage of food.

They have not only collected a huge amount of funds from their villages concerned but also rationed things like rice, flour, moong, sugar, diesel and petrol to stay put at the border for long. Even locals are providing vegetables, fruits, milk, lassi, sweets and other eatables to them. Significantly, the farmers have now kept their ration safe for future and are using those donated by locals daily.

“The preparation for the protest started in November and we had collected over Rs 3 lakh funds from our village for it. The amount has been donated by land owners at the rate of Rs 150 per acre and Rs 40 per bigha,” said Gurlal Singh of Baliyan village in Sangrur district.

Singh said a similar pattern was adopted by a majority of the villages in Punjab to collect the funds. “So far, we have spent some money from Rs 3 lakh for buying diesel. Other villagers are ready to donate more if needed, hence money is no issue,” he added.

Jasvinder Singh from Muktsar said for the first two-three days, they spent the money for buying milk but now locals were providing them not only milk but also water, lassi, ladoos, halwa, jalebi, fruits and vegetables. Even langar was also being organised by the locals daily. “Hence, we are not using our ration for now. It has been kept safe for the time of crisis,” he added.

Satvinder, another protester from Mansa, said “Many NRIs have also been in our constant touch and they want to donate money for the agitation but we have kept their offer on hold as every village committee has, at present, sufficient amount of money to meet their daily requirements,” he added.