Various farmer organisations have called for a protest march to Delhi starting Monday and giv ing details about their march, the Bhartiya Kisan Parishad (BKP) leader Sukhbir Khalifa said that the farmers are protesting to demand fair compensation and benefits under the new agricultural laws.
Notably, the protest march by the farmers is part of broader demonstrations by various farmer organisations, including the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) and the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM-non-political). These farmers organisation said they will begin their march to Delhi on December 6. Apart from this, other farmer unions in Kerala, Uttarakhand, and Tamil Nadu plan symbolic marches to their respective legislative assemblies on the same day.
Farmers' protest: What are key demands?
- These protesting farmers are seeking a 10 per cent allocation of plots and a 64.7 per cent hike in compensation under the previous land acquisition law, equivalent to four times the market rate.
- Moreover for the land acquired after January 1, 2014, they are asking for 20 per cent of the plots.
- Their other additional demands include employment and rehabilitation benefits for the children of landless farmers, implementation of directives issued by the High Power Committee, and proper arrangements for resettling inhabited areas.
3-tier security at Delhi-Noida border
For the security arrangement, a 3-tier security plan has been put in place and security forces have been deployed in parts of Noida-Delhi ahead of the farmers 'Delhi Chalo' protest march, said an official on Monday.
According to the Shivhari Meena, Addl. Commissioner Of Police Noida, " We are in constant talks with farmers regarding the 'Delhi Chalo' march. Yesterday also we spoke to them for 3 hours. We have also prepared a 3-tier security plan...around 5,000 Police personnel are conducting checking at various locations...we have also issued traffic advisory...around 1000 PSC personnel have also been deployed, there are arrangements of water cannons..."
The police said they are constantly communicating with the farmers, and also seeing to the traffic management. A traffic advisory has also been issued so that security arrangements are maintained. Around 5,000 police officials and 1,000 PSC workers have been deployed, and water cannon, TGS squad, fire squad and others have been deployed for emergency and traffic management.
Jagdeep Dhankhar urges farmers to resolve issue
Meanwhile, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar has reached out to farmers, urging them to resolve their issues through dialogue.
In his address on Sunday, marking the 138th birth anniversary of Raja Mahendra Pratap, VP Dhankhar said, "We must remember that we don't fight with our own, we don't deceive our own. Deception is for the enemy, while our own are to be embraced. How can one sleep peacefully when farmers' issues are not being resolved swiftly? I am pleased that Agriculture Minister Shivraj Chouhan has already held discussions, and we are actively working on it. I appeal to my farmer brothers to to my farmer brothers to understand that in this country, issues are resolved through dialogue and mutual understanding."
Earlier this morning, Noida Police, expecting disruptions from a farmers' protest march heading towards Delhi beefed up security and conducted vehicle inspections after issuing comprehensive traffic advisories.
