PATIALA: Thousands of Indian farmers riding tractors attempted to resume their push towards New Delhi on Wednesday after failing to reach an agreement with the government on their demands for higher crop rates.
Thousands of Indian farmers, riding tractors, attempted to resume their push towards New Delhi on Wednesday after failing to reach an agreement with the government on their demands for higher prices for crops.
The demonstrations aimed to replicate the year-long siege of highways into the capital that pressured Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration into withdrawing its agricultural reform plans in 2021.
Police have kept a mile-long convoy of protesting farmers atop agricultural machinery at bay since last week, close to the small village of Shambhu, several hours’ drive north of New Delhi.
Protesters resist efforts
Demonstrators resisted tear gas attacks and pledged to push through a formidable blockade of concrete barricades and metal spikes erected to halt their progress.
In anticipation of a fresh effort to breach their barricades, police deployed tear gas on the roadside demonstration encampment from drones flying overhead. Farmers responded by distributing goggles and attempting to hit the aircraft with slingshots, as well as flying kites to obstruct their flight paths. They have also brought excavators and bulldozers to the demonstration site, with the aim of charging through police barricades when they get the chance.
The Haryana state police warned owners not to provide the demonstrators with earthmovers, stating that they would be held criminally liable if the vehicles harmed officers.
Farm unions are calling for a law to set a minimum support price for all crops, expanding a government scheme that already exists for staples including wheat and rice. They have also called for other concessions including universal pensions for farmers aged sixty and above and the waiving of loans.
Demonstrators temporarily paused their procession last week to await the outcome of talks between unions and government ministers.”
