New Delhi: The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), the umbrella union of the farmers who are protesting against these three laws for around 10 months, has called for a 10-hour Bharat Bandh tomorrow.
The bandh will be held from 6 AM to 4 PM during which all government and private offices, educational and other institutions, shops, industries, and commercial establishments as well as public events and functions will be closed throughout the country. However, emergency services including ambulances and fire services will be exempted.
The bandh will be enforced in a voluntary and peaceful manner, the SKM has assured.
SKM has appealed to all organisations of workers, traders, transporters, businessmen, students, youth and women and all social movements to extend solidarity with the farmers that day.
Meanwhile, several political parties, including the Congress, AAP, YSRC, DMK, Telugu Desam, Left parties, BSP, RJD have extended their support. Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu governments have announced complete support to the nationwide strike.
The All India Bank Officers’ Confederation has also extended its support to the bandh on Monday.
On the other hand, the Delhi Police have said that no protesters will be allowed to enter Delhi from the three protest sites at the city’s border.
The government and farmer unions have held 11 rounds of talks so far, the last being on January 22, to break the deadlock and end the farmers’ protest.
The three laws — The Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and The Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act 2020 — were passed by the Parliament in September last year.
Farmer groups have alleged that these laws will end the mandi and MSP procurement systems and leave the farmers at the mercy of big corporates, even as the government has rejected these apprehensions as misplaced and asserted that these steps will help increase farmers’ income.
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