Farmer organisations staged protests across Punjab during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit, demanding a legal guarantee for MSP, opposing the proposed India-US trade agreement and criticising both the Centre’s farm policies and the state’s land pooling initiative.
Farmers stage a protest with an effigy during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Punjab, demanding a legal MSP guarantee and opposing the proposed India-US trade agreement. (Photo: SNS)
Farmers’ organisations staged protests across Punjab on Friday during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit, accusing the Centre of pursuing anti-farmer policies and demanding a legal guarantee for Minimum Support Price (MSP), while also opposing the proposed India-US trade agreement.
At Amritsar’s Golden Gate, activists of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) burned an effigy of the Central government. District president Ranjit Singh Kaler alleged that the Centre’s policies were favouring corporate interests at the expense of farmers and labourers.
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Kaler claimed that Jalandhar district KMSC president Salwinder Singh Jania had been placed under house detention by the police to prevent him from joining the protests. “If such actions continue, our organisation will be compelled to intensify its agitation,” he said.
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Seeking clarity from the Prime Minister, Kaler said the government should explain how the proposed India-US trade agreement would benefit farmers and agricultural workers. “Our foremost demand remains a legal guarantee for MSP. Policies that weaken farmers’ rights or encourage corporate control over agriculture are unacceptable,” he said.
He also criticised the Punjab government’s land pooling policy, calling it anti-farmer. “Punjab’s farmers will not part with even an inch of their land. The movement will continue until the land pooling policy is withdrawn,” Kaler asserted.
Meanwhile, the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) announced protests at district headquarters across Punjab during the Prime Minister’s visit. KMM leader Sarwan Singh Pandher said the decision was taken at a meeting in Ludhiana on Thursday.
“The inauguration of railway projects is another step towards privatisation. We are also raising issues such as a legal guarantee for MSP, farm loan waiver and concerns over the proposed India-US trade agreement,” Pandher said.
He added that the organisation would also seek the Prime Minister’s response on the release of “Bandi Singhs”, Punjab’s representation in the Bhakra Beas Management Board and the state’s riparian rights over river waters.
The protests coincided with Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Chandigarh and Jalandhar, where he is inaugurating and laying the foundation stones for multiple infrastructure projects amid heightened security arrangements across Punjab.
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