More than 40 days have passed since farmers are protesting on the Singhu border in Delhi. The seventh round of talk is going to happen between government and farmers but there is no signal of the problem getting resolved by any of the sides in this winter season as both government and farmers are not willing to give up an inch of their rights to perform their duty to save and protect their ideas and values.
No winter session, not only in the Indian parliament but also in the farms of the three big Indian states Punjab, Haryana & Uttar Pradesh. Since farmers are continuing protest at the Delhi Singhu border, farms are empty in the prime time, when farmers should besowing wheat and sugarcane which are a significant source of income for all the three states. At this time of pandemic where the economy is going down, only the agriculture sector has survived and shown a growth rate of 3.4% where the overall economy was down by 23.9%. In this peak hour, if farmers refrain from the farms, it will make a bigger impact on the Indian economy as well as the GDP of the country. It is important to mention, Punjab farmers contribute a lion’s share to the overall agricultural sector. No government will ever want to see these consequences in this difficult time of pandemic and economic crises.
Winter session is canceled in the parliament due to covid-19 pandemic but ironically government of India successfully performed the election in Bihar allegedly without having good safety measures. But when it comes to allowing parliament winter session, the government is not ready to hear the opposition and political parties like Akali dal which was their former ally. They broke off recently due to the 3 farm bills, which they call “teen Kala kanoon” (Three Black Laws). Do you agree with this term? Kala Kanoon?
While attacks from the opposition continue, Central Government in its defense cited the Covid-19 pandemic as the reason for not holding the Parliament winter session. In the recently concluded monsoon session of parliament, few of the MPs tested positive and after consulting with other parties, they have decided not to hold parliament winter session. This official statement was announced by parliament affairs minister MR. Prahalad Joshi.
Sadly, as of now, 41 farmers have lost their lives while protesting the farm laws. At the Singhu border of Delhi, the protest is ongoing for the MSP and better grain storage facilities demand. We hope for positive solutions for farmers as the bill is supposed to be for the betterment of farmers of India. Today on the 11th of Jan 2021, expressing disappointment over the way the government is handling the situation of protest, the Supreme court of India asked the ruling party to put a stay on the 3 farm laws. The court said, “Put Farm Laws On Hold Or We Will Do It”. The countries highest body of law has asked the central government of India to set up a committee to talk to farmers. Supreme court said: “We don’t think Centre is handling the situation well”.
In the end, we need to come to a situation where we should not wait for who blinks first, either government or farmers here. We hope the voice of the farmers will be heard and their problems will be addressed and solved by the Government of India and the Supreme court of the country and it is a win-win situation for all concerned parties.
After all, India is a land of farmers and India ranks second worldwide in farm outputs. Agriculture employs more than 50 percent of Indian work force and 17–18% of India’s GDP is contributed by agricultural sector.
