Tag: Farm Laws 2020

‘Providing Food To Protesting Farmers Is A Sacred Duty’

By LokMarg

Farmer Harpreet Singh Mattu, 50, from Mehakpur in Jalandhar, Punjab, tells LokMarg whey he set up a 24×7 langar, with assistance from his brother Balwinder Singh in California, US, to feed protesters at Delhi-Singhu border

I feel these protests are a landmark moment in our lives and it is our contribution towards the life of future generations, so that can have an easier life than us. With the introduction of these three farm bills, the government has shown us that there is no need to build consensus before bringing in a new law.

Sahi kahoon to inhone loktantra se lok hi khatm kar diya (The truth is that the BJP has taken away people’s will out of democracy). If the farm bills are, as the government says, beneficial to the farmers, then why didn’t they bring it to the table before; people would have breathed easy.

Mattu (left) at the kitchen set up near Singhu border protest site

Apart from registering my voice at the protests, I am also doing sewa of other farmers by organising a langar. My brother, Balwinder Singh, who lives in California, US, called me before the protests started and said, “Let’s do it for our brothers. Let’s start a langar so that no one goes hungry in this biting cold during the protests.”

My brother is the pradhan at Gurudwara Sahib Riverside, California, which had orgnaised largescale langar (food distribution) in their area during pandemic to people who had been isolating. Since the idea originally took root in his mind, we kept the logo of California Gurudwara at our langar sewa.

I believe human hearts are all the same everywhere. The pandemic has shown us that we are all in this together and thus we have to help each other in times of need. Providing langar to people is a sacred duty. Even during the pandemic the Sikhs ensured that no one went hungry.

Mattu with his teammates at the protest site

Slowly more people have started joining us. In the beginning I brought along three trucks (my own) full of food, utensils etc. About a dozen halwais (cooks) and four assistants accompanied us so that we could work in shifts and get ample rest.

We can’t do sewa of some people at the cost of others. We take full precautions for coronavirus and keep sanitising the kitchen. Cleanliness is a way of life for the Sikhs, as you must have seen all Gurudwaras are spotlessly clean and no one thinks cleaning is beyond them. A lot of people volunteer for us and we have managed to feed thousands of people since December 2, when I first went to Delhi.

ALSO READ:  Langar In The Times Of Covid-19

Here, we make sure that the food is always served hot and that there is variety too. I must really thank the farmers from Haryana who give us fresh vegetables and milk for the langar. Also, people behave in a disciplined manner and ensure that everything is disposed of properly.

I wake up at 4 am to get things started. The first thing to go up on the fire is tea and we make nearly 13 huge containers of tea every day so that our farmer brothers can start their day with a warm cuppa. From 4 in the morning I work non-stop till 9 am. After that I take a small break and get back to work at 10:30 am, only work till 8 pm when I call it a day. Then I go to sleep. That is my routine here.

With his son early in the day at kitchen

I did take a day break to visit my hometown to attend the funeral of a fellow farmer’s father and also to check up on my own father who has not been keeping well. That was the only time I missed the sewa here. We have to manage both family and country and farmers are really good at multitasking.

I now wish to bring mobile washrooms to the protests site in Delhi. I have customised another truck of mine into mobile washrooms. It is important to take care of hygiene any way but more so in times of a pandemic. I hope the government also sees and understands what the farmers are trying to say and take away these bills in the interest of the nation.

Mattu with his team at Singhu border
UP Farmers Didn’t Join Protest

‘Many UP Farmers Didn’t Join Protest Due To Crop Pattern’

By LokMarg

Ram Swaroop Singh, founder member of the Consortium of Indian Farmers Association, explains where the Centre erred on Farm Laws, and why farmers from states other than Punjab-Haryana are not protesting

I must say that the Union government hasn’t done a good job either in drafting the three farm bills, which they claim are beneficial to farmers, or in communicating the provisions under these laws to the farming community. The government didn’t take farmers into confidence before pushing these laws, particularly in a democracy.

This year has been uncharacteristically tough on everyone because of the raging pandemic and people are more worried about their future than usual. It is in times like these that we need a compassionate government even more. Mujhe lagta hai ye government logon ya kisano ki parwah nahi karti (I believe the current government has little concern for the poor or the hand that tills the land).

The farmer grows more food than is required for his own family. Yet, over the decades, his income has remained stagnant. He is the least paid among all the sectors for his services. Surely, agriculture sector needs a complete overhaul, but in favour of the farmers, not in favour of corporates.

ALSO READ: ‘Govt Wants Farm Sector To Go Telecom Way’

Several people have pointed that only Punjab-Haryana farmers are protesting. True, the ongoing protests around Delhi-NCR are predominantly by farmers from Punjab and Haryana, then say from states like Uttar Pradesh or Bihar. But there are various reasons behind it.

First, the pattern of agriculture is different in separate states in India. UP farmers grow less crops (in quantity) even though the variety of crops may be more. Besides, it’s the time of reaping of crops grown in UP (like sugarcane), while the Punjab-Haryana farmers are already done with the harvesting and have some time on their hands before the next sowing season begins.

Second, the Centre has so far been procuring wheat and paddy crops mainly from Punjab-Haryana for Public Distribution Systems and thus a stable and consistent MSP in place benefits them more than farmers from other states. Farmers from other states don’t have such ready markets. Farmers in UP also have small land holdings in comparison to their counterparts in Punjab or Haryana. In addition to this, farmers in UP are also less aware of the happenings around them.

WATCH: ‘We Haven’t Heard Of Farm Laws Or Protests’

Yet another reason is that unlike in Punjab-Haryana where the joint family system still persists, there is division of land in UP into small parts which aren’t very beneficial, as very little grain crop can be grown in that land area. The Uttar Pradesh Imposition of Ceiling of Land Holding Act, 1960 doesn’t allow a person to hold more than 12.5 acres of agricultural land. Thus farming remains a poor man’s vocation.

Our (Consortium of Indian Farmers) Association has been active for the past 10 years. We have been demanding that the MS Swaminathan Commission Report needs to be implemented as soon and as honestly as possible if we are to alleviate the rural distress.

Singh says the Centre should have taken farmers into confidence before bringing in agri laws

I have worked closely with farmers with guidance from my late father-in-law Chaudhary Chandrapal Singh, a farmer leader and minister in the state government. In my view, the government does not listen to the parties concerned. It is a statesman virtue to communicate well with the public. I wish the Centre could take a leaf out of Jagan Reddy, the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh, who attentively listens to all policy recommendations and takes decisions in a composed manner by taking the concerned into confidence.

‘A Farmer Isn’t Afraid Of Police Baton Or Water Cannon’

By LokMarg

Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Nirdesh Choudhary, 40, has been protesting at Delhi-UP border for several days in the cold. Choudhary says farmers are willing to endure the hardship for their children’s future

A farmer’s nerves are made of steel and the resolve firm as a stone. We don’t protest on small matters, but when we do the government better sit up and take notice. We can bear hunger, thirst, rain, winter nights and what have you… only to ensure that the future of our children is secure.

After all, we go through all these while working in the fields. Hum raton me kai baar khet pe hi sote hain, bahut zyada thand me bhi, sadkon ki thand hamara kya bigadegi (We often sleep in the fields to take care of our crops, at times in the dead of winters. So, we can tolerate the cold here). I have been using my voice to protest the three agriculture bills since November 28. I went back home briefly to check on my family and house, and am back with renewed strength now.

We are not scared of the police or their batons or water cannons. I was roughed up by cops, but I take it as my contribution to a larger cause. We have put everything at stake to let the government know that this is not the way to treat farmers. The government thinks corporates will bring about another revolution for the farmers, but it won’t.

ALSO READ: When The Farmer Fights Back

We want the government to give us in writing that the MSP will be maintained or the protests can go on indefinitely. Ye kale kanoon hum nahi manne wale. The thing is we farmers have nothing to lose anymore. The farmer was anyway at the lowest rung in the profit chain and the pandemic this year has meant even lesser earnings. Maybe we fight the best when we have nothing to lose. We as farmers are not going to get bogged down this time.

BKU activists at Delhi-UP border protest site

It does get difficult sometimes, like I had to take a bus to reach the spot and then had to walk a decent distance to reach the venue because of the barricades. Sometimes you wonder about your kids back home but then you remember the larger cause and forget the personal issues. We have got our own dry rations to cook and eat here, and all this gets tiring sometimes, but then we take strength from the collective spirit.

Covid looms large but we are maintaining full social distance and taking all necessary precautions; we distribute masks every day and ask people to carry sanitizers. We try to maintain utmost hygiene while cooking, eating etc. However, the government needs to understand that if we survive the pandemic we need something to survive further.

WATCH: ‘Shoot Us In The Chest, We Won’t Turn Back’

The farmer has no safety net at all, no pension, nothing to fall back on except crops, and if even that is taken up by corporates, where do we go? There are few women out here, numbering between 100- 150 and if need be more women will join the protests. Female farmers are one of the most resilient, hardworking and smart people you will come across. We are not scared of risk taking and have the capacity to make quick decisions.

Police barricades at Delhi-UP border near Ghazipur where farmers are protesting

Farmers have decided we will not go to Burari site, we will go straight to Jantar Mantar. I wonder why Modiji said that other parties are misleading us into protesting. As if we don’t have a mind of our own. If we are smart enough to raise crops year after year that feeds the whole country, aren’t we smart enough to make our own decisions? Kisan apne ghar se nikal aaya hai aur is baar baatcheet poori honesty se honi chahiye.