Farmers’ body supported GP candidates win in panchayat polls
Dipak Kumar Singha won from Khagore 4 GP and Bibi Akhtarun from Khagore 5 GP. Both won as Independents.
Farmer’s body Jai Kisan Andolan has been vocal in its demand for the rights of West Bengal farmers, especially on the minimum support price (MSP) of all crops and enactment and implementation of a law for MSP guarantee in the state.
Jai Kisan Andolan (JKA) has given a call for a 10-day long MSP Adhikar Yatra to demand MSP for all crops, including maize, for farmers in the state.
The march started today and will continue till 30 April. It will start from Khagar gram panchayat in Goalpokhar-1 Block of North Dinajpur district and end at Goalpokhar gram panchayat, covering more than a hundred villages in 13-gram panchayats.
Advertisement
After collecting ground information about the plight of maize farmers, the demands of the farmers shall be presented to the Prime Minister, Chief Minister, district magistrate of North Dinajpur and block development officers.
Avik Saha, national president of JKA, said, “The government should give farmers the legal rights to MSP for all crops and not try to lure them with charity and benevolence. Farmers all over the country are fighting for this demand. A draft law has been sent for consideration to chief minister Mamata Banerjee, but is sitting on it. On the one hand, she says her government is farmer-friendly, but on the other, she is reluctant to enact and enforce laws to ensure and guarantee income of farmers. She is playing tricks with the farmers of Bengal. We will launch a state-wide agitation in this regard soon.”
Through this long march, JKA demands from both the Centre and the state that sufficient number of government procurement centres should be opened in all blocks of North Dinajpur district to buy the entire maize crop directly from all farmers at MSP; sufficient staff and fund-allocation should be provided in procurement centres so that all farmers can sell their entire maize to the government at MSP.
Advertisement
