Farmers call off protest after they were allowed to enter Delhi, proceed towards Kisan ghat

Protesting farmers who had marched from Haridwar to Delhi as part of the Kisan Kranti Padyatra, ended their march at the Kisan Ghat in the early hours of Wednesday, police said. They ended their march after Delhi police removed barricades midnight last night to allow the farmers to enter Delhi and proceed towards Kisan Ghat.

The farmers entered the national capital riding their tractors and trolleys and proceeded towards Kisan Ghat where heavy police deployment was arranged.

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Earlier on Tuesday, to find a solution to the farmers’ agitation, Home Minister Rajnath Singh met with a group of farmers belonging to the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU), along with others. After the meeting, BKU national spokesperson Rakesh Tikait said that the Home Minister has assured and discussed “each and every matter of our issues and they said they will help us.” The government accepted 7 out of the 9 demands of the farmers. The two demands that the government refused to meet are related to farm loan waivers and implementation of the Swaminathan report.

However, the stalemate continued as the farmers refused to end their protests as the farmers want all their demands to be met.

Thousands of farmers to assemble at the Kisan Ghat in New Delhi on the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. This is the first march taken out by the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) since the death of its founder on May 15, 2011.

READ | Farmers To Continue Their Protest Even As The Government Accepts Most Of Their Demands

HERE’S  WHAT THE FARMERS WERE DEMANDING:

• Loan waivers
• Clearance of pending sugarcane payments
• Implementation of the Swaminathan committee report
• Free electricity for running tubewells
• Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana should be made applicable to all crops and premium must be paid by the government
• Assurance of a minimum income for farmers and a monthly pension of rs 5,000 for small and marginal farmers who completed 60 years of age
• Rehabilitation of families of farmers who had committed suicide
• Diesel tractors should be kept out of the ambit of national green tribunal directions that have mandated the removal of all diesel vehicles older than 10 years from the national capital region