Protesting farmers warn Centre not to test their patience over Farm Laws

New Delhi: Farmers who have been camping on the Delhi border in protest against the Central government's controversial farm Acts for the last six months have intensified their tone of caution, reiterating that they would not concede to the government's pressure tactics.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha, the umbrella organisation of all protesting farmers unions, on Wednesday urged the Centre not to test their patience and settle their demands after restarting dialogues.

Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh, have been in makeshift settlements at three Delhi border points, Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur, daring all adverse environments and the COVID situation for nearly six months, demanding the repeal of three farm laws and a legal guarantee for the minimum support Price (MSP) and other two issues.

In a statement, the SKM called upon the Centre to abstain from its inhuman and careless attitudes towards their own citizens, who are known as ''anna daatas''. "If the government cares about its farmers and wants their welfare, then it should initiate dialogue with the farmers and accept their demands," the SKM said,

Over 470 farmers have died so far in the course of this movement and many agitators have lost their jobs and education, the SKM said adding that none of these will deter them from continuing the protest until their demands met.

So far, there have been 11 rounds of talks between the protesting unions and the government, but the deadlock has continued as both sides have stuck to their stand.

The farmers' protests were intense in January and the Centre offered the suspension of the Farm Laws for 12-18 months from implementation as a pacifying tactic, which the Farmers' unions rejected.

The Supreme Court stayed the implementation of the laws till further orders and set up a committee to resolve the impasse.

When this government, which "pretends" to do the welfare of farmers, takes "full credit" for increasing production or export in any crop or state, it should also take responsibility for every "human loss and other loss" taking place on the borders of Delhi, the SKM, an umbrella body of agitating farmer unions, said.