Talks with farmers end on positive note; next meeting on March 19

The second round of meeting between a three-member Central government delegation, led by Union Minister for Agriculture Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and protesting farmer unions ended here after three hours on Saturday night with a positive approach and cordial manner. 

After the meeting, Chouhan told the media that the next meeting would be held on March 19. Besides Chouhan, two other Central ministers, Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal and Union Minister for Consumer Affairs Pralhad Joshi, along with a delegation of the Punjab government, comprising three ministers, held parleys with 28 representatives of the two farmer forums, over their long-pending demands, including a legal guarantee on the minimum support price (MSP) for crops.

Addressing the farmers, Chouhan said the “government is committed to the welfare of them and that the government has been making regular necessary policy interventions to address issues being faced by the farmers”. “The Narendra Modi-led government is committed to the welfare of the farmers. We listened to the views of Jagjit Singh Dallewal and Sarwan Singh Pandher. We had a good discussion,” Chouhan said, adding “The discussions will continue and the next meeting will be held on March 19”.

However, farmer leaders reiterated their demand before the government and it has sought reports and data they cited, which the farmer leaders have agreed to provide to the government. The government assured that it will study the reports and data, based on which discussions will be taken forward.

Addressing the media after the meeting, Chouhan announced that the talks between the government and the farmers will continue to be held with a positive approach and cordial manner and that the next meeting with farmers will be held on March 19 here.

From Punjab, the delegation was represented by Finance Minister Harpal Cheema, Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian and Food and Supplies Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak. Farmers unions -- Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha -- have been camping at Shambhu and Khanauri, the border points between Punjab and Haryana border, since February 13 last year by pitching their tents there after security forces didn’t allow them to march to Delhi to press for their demands.

Earlier on February 14, a meeting between a Central team led by Union Minister Pralhad Joshi and farmers’ representatives was held in Chandigarh, with both sides claiming that it was held in a cordial atmosphere. Those talks between both sides resumed almost after a year of deadlock. In that meeting, farmer leaders presented 10 demands, including a legal guarantee for MSP, implementation of the Swaminathan Commission Report, debt waiver for farmers and farm workers, a pension scheme for farmers and labourers, cancellation of cases registered against farmers during the 2020-21 protests, and compensation and job to kin of farmers who had died during the protests.

Fasting leader Dallewal reached the meeting venue in an ambulance from the Khanauri border. A day earlier, farmers held a show of strength to mark the death anniversary of farm activist Shubhkaran Singh, who had died of bullet injuries when farmers, who were marching towards Delhi, were stopped by the Haryana Police at the Khanauri border to move ahead.

The Haryana Police denied that the man died from a bullet fired by them. However, the Punjab Police had registered a zero First Information Report (FIR) into the death.