Farmers who are related to the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha began their five day’s inaction outside the office of Punjab Cabinet Minister Ravjot Singh Monday, warning that the farmers protest may escalate if the State Government does not start talks with them on its demands.
Farmer organizations have already made memorandums to the deputy commissioners in all over Punjab. They have taken to the streets, vowing to go on a five-day protest outside the offices and homes of the state ministers calling for talks with the government over their 12-point charter of demands.
If there are no talks with government, the groups will meet on September 16 to discuss intragroup steps, said farmer leader Rai. He said that demonstrators could move towards bigger rallies, such as halting the railways and highways.
However, the inconvenience the public may suffer in the event such measures are implemented would be the responsibility of the state government, Rai said.
The protesters had also voiced anger that the power supply was being cut off sporadically and expressed their concern about the impact on tube-well irrigation systems at a critical period due to their daily need for water to irrigate the standing crops. Rai had also protested the government on its purported shortage of coal saying that there was lack of adequate availability of power for agricultural and industrial reasons.
Farmers have, among others, demanded firm procurement price for products such as basmati and maize grains at the Minimum Support Price, as well as mung, mustard and potatoes. They’ve also been calling for a complete waiver of farmers’ loans and compensation for suicide of farm workers, a allocation of government jobs for farmer and worker families who suffered suicide deaths.
The charter has a number of demands in relation to the effective implementation of policies in the areas of floods, groundwater depletion and air and water pollution, distribution of river waters (riparian principle).
The protesters have also called for parliamentary resolutions in the Punjab Assembly for resolutions to oppose the Seed Act, 2025, Cooperative Act, 2026, VB-G RAM G Act and Electricity Amendment Bill, 2025. They are seeking an outright ban on prepaid electricity meter fitting.
Other demands include against the proposed India-US trade agreement, return of the vehicles and belongings allegedly taken from the protest sites at Shambhu and Khanauri, and farmers/workers have rights of ownership over land they farm.