Narendra Modi Interacts With Farmers LIVE Updates: PM Modi to Address Farmers from Six States Shortly, Amit Shah Assures MSP Will Remain

PM Modi Arrives in Mehrauli | Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives in Mehrauli for the 'Kisan Sammelan' in Delhi today, where he is set to address farmers.

The three farm laws are in the favour of the farmers. Nobody can remove MSP system or snatch farmers' land from them. The government is ready to hold talks with farmers' unions with an open heart, Amit Shah added. 

The Opposition is misleading farmers regarding MSP. I want to make it clear that the MSP system will remain, said Union Home Minister Amit Shah in the BJP's meeting in Mehrauli today ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech.

The Department of Agriculture announced on Twitter that the next instalment from the PM-KISAN fund to farmer beneficiaries directly:

"Based on the data of the beneficiaries uploaded by the state governments, the amount is directly transferred to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries after multi-level examination and verification of their data by various related agencies including banks," it said.

राज्य सरकारों के द्वारा अपलोड किए गए लाभार्थियों के डेटा के आधार पर बैंकों सहित विभिन्न संबंधित एजेंसियों द्वारा उनके डेटा के बहु-स्तरीय परिक्षण और सत्यापन के बाद सम्मान राशि सीधे लाभार्थियों के बैंक खातों में स्थानांतरित की जाती है।#PMKisan@nstomar @narendramodi @PRupala

— Agriculture INDIA (@AgriGoI) December 25, 2020

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other parliamentarians pay floral tribute to Bharat Ratna awardee Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya and former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee on their birth anniversaries, at Central Hall in the Parliament:

Impasse between Farmers and Centre Continues | So far, there has not been any headway after five rounds of talks between the government and farmer unions, who have maintained that their demand for repeal of the three farm laws was “non-negotiable”. Also, with pressure mounting on the BJP-JJP government in Haryana over the farmers’ protests, Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala Thursday offered to act as a mediator between the farmers and the Centre to resolve the standoff. He said new central farm laws need many amendments and urged protesting farmers to give ‘concrete suggestions’.

Union Minister Anurag Thakur this morning said, "Many farmers have thanked PM Modi for the new agriculture laws. We will double farmers' income by 2022. The government is ready to talk and clear doubts of the farmers who are protesting. A solution can be found only through dialogue."

RECAP | Yesterday, Haryana Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala said the new central farm laws need many amendments and urged protesting farmers to give "concrete suggestions". The Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) leader reiterated that he will tender his resignation the day he feels he is unable to ensure the minimum support price (MSP) for the farmers' produce in Haryana. The JJP is in alliance with the BJP in Haryana.  

Farmers sleep in a tractor trolly at the site of a protest against new farm laws, at the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border in Ghaziabad. (Reuters)

7 US Lawmakers Write to Pompeo on Farmers' Protest in India | A group of seven influential US lawmakers, including Indian-American Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, have written to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, urging him to raise the issue of farmers' protest in India with his Indian counterpart. India has called the remarks by foreign leaders and politicians on protests by farmers as "ill-informed" and "unwarranted", asserting that the matter pertains to the internal affairs of a democratic country.

Preps on for PM Modi's Speech Today | Meanwhile, BJP's chief JP Nadda has directed union ministers, MPs and MLAs to participate in the address, and letters have been sent to presidents of state units and all other senior leaders for PM Modi's programme today. Big screens have been set up by the Bharatiya Janata Party at every block development centre and district-level programmes will be held an hour before Modi’s speech at 12 pm.

PM Modi to Release Book on Vajpayee | The Prime Minister will release a book ‘Atal Bihari Vajpayee in Parliament: A Commemorative Volume’ to mark the birth anniversary of the former prime minister on Friday. PM Modi will pay floral tributes to the former Prime Minister at his portrait, which was unveiled on February 12, 2019 in the Central Hall of the Parliament. The day is also observed as Good Governance Day. The book will be released at a function in the Central Hall of Parliament.

RECAP | The Congress, meanwhile, stepped up its attack on the government and petitioned President Ram Nath Kovind and demanded a joint session of Parliament to repeal the laws, with party leader Rahul Gandhi alleging that democracy is only "imaginary" in India. Gandhi met the President and handed over a memorandum stated to have been signed by 2 crore farmers and demanded a repeal of the laws, saying they will not benefit the farmers or labourers. The Centre has rejected the demand for repeal of the laws, saying the reforms are beneficial to farmers.

Farmers' Body to Hold Meeting with Centre Today | The Sanyukt Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of 40 farmer unions protesting at three border points of Delhi - Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur - for the last 27 days, is likely to hold a meeting on Friday to discuss the Centre's letter and respond to it formally.

Centre Says 'Not Logical' to Include MSP in Talks with Farmers | Meanwhile, the Centre has once again invited protesting farmer unions for the resumption of the stalled talks and asked them to choose a date of their convenience to end the impasse over the three new farm reform laws. The Centre in its letter said it is ready to take up whatever issues the unions want to discuss in addition to those dealt with in previous rounds.

Modi to Address Farmers | He will also have a conversation with farmers from six different states during the event. Under the PM-KISAN scheme, a financial benefit of Rs 6,000 per year is provided to eligible farmers, payable in three equal 4-monthly installments of Rs 2,000 each. The fund is transferred directly to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries.

PM Modi to Release PM-KISAN Instalment Today | Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver a virtual address this noon with BJP workers from across the country listening in. He will then release the next instalment of financial benefit under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-Kisan) via video-conferencing. With the push of a button, the Prime Minister will enable the transfer of more than Rs 18,000 crore to over 9 crore farmer families.