The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) and central trade unions have issued instructions regarding the upcoming Gramin Bharat Bandh to be held on February 16.
The bandh event is expected to be held from 6 am to 4 pm, with farmers participating in widespread chakka jams on major roads across the country from 12 noon to 4 pm. In Punjab, a large section of state and national highways will be closed for four hours during the protests.
At a meeting in Ludhiana on Saturday, BKU Lakhowal general secretary Harinder Singh Lakhowal unveiled the strategy regarding Gramin Bharat Bandh.
Farmers, mainly from Punjab, but also from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, started the ‘Chalo Delhi’ march on February 13 after a fruitless meeting with the federal government. The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have called for protests to force the Center to accept their demands, including enactment of a law to guarantee minimum support price (MSP) for crops.
Dr. Darshan Pal, Member, National Coordinating Committee (NCC), SKM said indian express”, “Gramin Bharat bandh call was scheduled to be held in December. On this day, villages will remain closed to all agricultural activities as well as MNREGA and rural works. On that day, farmers, agricultural workers, and rural workers will not go to work. We will ensure emergency services access for ambulances, fatalities, marriages, medical shops, newspaper supplies, students taking exams and passengers heading to the airport. “
He further mentioned that trading and procurement of vegetables and other crops will be stopped. Village shops, grain markets, wet markets, government and non-government agencies, rural industrial and service establishments, and private businesses are urged to close. In addition, shops and businesses in towns near the village will remain closed during the strike.
Public transport is likely to resume operations as the Road Employees Union is also part of this protest.
What are their demands?
The demands mirror those made by two farmer union forums advocating the ‘Dilli Chalo’ movement. Apart from minimum support price (MSP) for crops and pension for farmers, there are also employee-related issues such as withdrawal of implementation of operational performance-linked wages (OPS), amendments in labor laws and various other requirements.
These also include minimum wages $26,000 per month, abolition of four labor laws, guarantee of employment as a fundamental right, opposition to privatization of public sector undertakings (PSUs) and contextualization of workforce, and abolition of fixed-term employment, Indian Express I the report said.
Besides, they also sought to strengthen the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), revive the old pension scheme and ensure pension and social security for all in the formal and informal sectors.