Next Panchayat by SKM(NP)-KMM on Sept 22 at Pipli in Kurukshetra
Despite Govt pressures, thousands of farmers hold ‘Key Panchayat’ in Uchana Grain Market
HARISH MONGA
Ferozepur, September 15, 2024: In defiance of administrative pressure, thousands of farmers and labourers gathered at Uchana Grain Market today for a major panchayat organized by Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha. Key leaders like Jagjit Singh Dallewal, Sarwan Singh Pandher, Abhimanyu Kohar, and Amarjeet Singh Mohri, among others, were present. The session was led by Hoshiar Singh Kharal.
Farmers received police notices beforehand, and authorities tried to block the event by closing the market gates and intimidating tent and sound service providers. Despite these tactics, the panchayat continued, with speakers highlighting the government’s failure to implement an MSP guarantee law, a promise that PM Modi had made in 2011 when he wrote to the then PM Dr Manmohan Singh.
Farmer leaders emphasised that their movement is not political or focused on electoral gains, but rather about securing the future of coming generations. They denounced the government's anti-farmer policies, citing that 833 farmers had died in the 2020-21 protests, with an additional 33 deaths and 433 injuries in the ongoing agitation. They accused the Modi government of imposing policies shaped by the World Trade Organization and the World Bank, which are detrimental to Indian agriculture.
The next panchayat, organized by Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Non-political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, is scheduled for September 22 in the Pipli grain market in Kurukshetra.