‘Delhi Chalo’ march: What are the big demands of farmers? Who is leading the protest?

The farmers have taken to the streets again. The ‘Delhi Chalo’ march is gathering momentum, as they are heading to the capital. The second round of talks with three Union ministers in Chandigarh on Monday evening did not yield any results.

Delhi and the National Capital Region have turned into the fortress to stop the farmers from Punjab and Haryana from entering. The security officials want to avoid a repeat of the yearlong agitation of 2020-21, which forced the Centre to roll back agricultural reforms.

So why has the farmers’ stir started again? And who is leading the agitation? We explain.

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What are the farmers demanding now?

The protesting farmers from Punjab and Haryana are marching to Delhi to pressure the Centre to meet their demands.

The farmers have a 12-point agenda and their main demand is a law that guarantees a minimum support price (MSP) for all crops. This, they believe, is a crucial lifeline to protect them from market uncertainties.

The government sets the MSP on nearly two dozen commodities twice a year after recommendations from the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices. Most of the crop procurement under MSP is from Punjab and Haryana and of mainly wheat and rice produce which supports the government’s public distribution system. Farmers want a law that guarantees MSP on every crop, according to a report in The Economic Times (ET).

Also read: ‘Delhi Chalo’: Why farmers are protesting again

The farmers also want crop prices to be determined as per Dr MS Swaminathan Commission’s report. The father of the Green Revolution recommended to the committee to increase MSP to at least 50 per cent above the weighted average cost of production.

The other demands include full debt waiver for farmers and labourers, punishment for perpetrators of the October 2021 killings in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri, pensions for farmers and farmer labourers, compensation for farmers who died during the earlier Delhi protest, including a job for one family member.

The farmers also want the Electricity Amendment 2020 to be scrapped and that India should withdraw from the World Trade Organization (WTO) and freeze all free trade agreements.

The other demands include the implementation of the Land Acquisition Act of 2013, with provisions for written consent from farmers before acquisition, and compensation at four times the collector rate; 200 (instead of 100) days’ employment under MGNREGA per year, a daily wage of Rs 700, and a scheme should be linked with farming; strict penalties and fines on companies producing fake seeds, pesticides, fertilisers; improvements in seed quality, a national commission for spices like chilli and turmeric; and ensuring the rights of indigenous peoples over water, forests, and land.

Also read: Why a legal guarantee of MSP is fraught with challenges

Who is leading the protests?

The earlier agitation saw more than 40 farmer organisations in Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh come under the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM). However, the current protests are being spearheaded by a breakaway faction, Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political).

Jagjit Singh Dallewal, president of the Punjab-based Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Sidhupur farm union, leads SKM (non-political). The group also includes Kisan Mazdoor Morcha led by Sarvan Singh Pandher.
The most prominent faces of SKM (non-political) are Dallewal and Pandher.

There are more than 250 farmers’ unions under the banner of the KMM, which claims to have the allegiance of about 100 unions, and the SKM (non-political) comprises another 150 unions, reports The Indian Express.

The big farmer leaders have not joined the protests yet but Rakesh Tikait has backed the call for Bharat Bandh on 16 February.

So far, 25,000 farmers and 5,000 tractors are reportedly joining the “Delhi Chalo’ march. However, more farmer organisations and farmers could join the protest as it gathers pace.

Also read: Drones, barriers & more: How Delhi-NCR has turned into a fortress to stop farmers’ march

Farmer leaders have held two rounds of talks with the government but have decided to go ahead with the protest.

Pander said, “The central government has not been able to make a strong decision on anything. The government is asking for time from us to pause the agitation. But they asked us for time two years ago too, when the farmers’ agitation ended.”

“We thought that giving time is not suitable now. If there is a strong proposal then we can think of giving time but they don’t have anything,” he added.

What is the government saying?

The two farmer unions, SKM (non-political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha sent a list of demands to the Centre on 6 February. The first round of talks was held on 8 February in Chandigarh between the farmer leaders and Union ministers Arjun Munda, Piyush Goyal and Nityanand Rai. The meeting was coordinated by Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann but not much came out of it.

The second round of talks was held on Monday. The five-hour-plus meeting between the three ministers and 26 farmer leaders in Chandigarh went on until midnight and they reached a consensus on some issues. Mann was not involved.

The Centre agreed to withdraw cases against the farmers from the 2020-21 agitation and the two sides also reached an understanding on compensation to families of farmers who died in the protest.

However, a consensus on the key issue of MSP was not reached. The government has also proposed to form a committee to deliberate on the legal guarantee for MSP, debt waivers and implementation of the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission, reports News18.

Agriculture Minister Munda, who led to talks, told news agency ANI, “We care about the interests of the farmers. It is not our concern if someone is doing politics over this issue. We have always been ready for talks and discussions and we are ready to do everything possible to find a solution to this issue. This issue also concerns the state governments. We need time to understand this issue and find a method to solve this…”

What has the government done on MSP so far?

The Centre has spent nearly Rs 2.28 lakh crore in 2022-23 to procure food grains at MSP, up nearly 115 per cent from 2014-15 when it had spent Rs 1.06 lakh crore on buying crops at MSP, reports News18.

The MSP-based procurement of food grains has also increased from 761.40 lakh metric tonnes in 2014-15 to 1062.69 lakh metric tonnes in 2022-23.

The MSP for paddy, wheat, jowar, ragi and cotton has increased year on year.

However, the farmers believe not enough is being done. They are marching towards Delhi and they are prepared for a long haul. With general elections approaching soon, the Narendra Modi government has reasons to worry.

With inputs from agencies