On Republic Day, widows of Vidarbha farmers to join stir

A group of farmers’ widows from Vidarbha, led by Vasantrao Naik Shetkari Swavlambhan Mission (VNSSM) chairman Kishore Tiwari, will participate in the ongoing agitation against the Centre’s three farm laws in Delhi on Republic Day.

“Atleast 60 widows, whose husbands committed suicide due to agriculture crisis, will reach Delhi from the Vidarbha region this week and participate in the agitation,” Tiwari said.

“The agrarian crisis in Vidarbha shows how faulty policies have adversely hit farmers and their families. The widows will narrate their stories and voice their protest against the farm laws,” he added.

Tiwari said: “The real challenge is to bring the investment expenditure down. Farmers cannot sustain agriculture practices unless the investment is low. In these three laws, there is no solution given on bringing the input cost down.”Apart from demanding strict implementation of minimum support price, as recommended by the Swaminathan Commission, the VNSSM seeks a policy that would bring small and marginal farmers within institutional credit mechanism.