Farmers to Hold ‘Rail Roko’ in Gurdaspur from February 22; Demand MSP for All Crops

The “Rail Roko” protest organized by the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMKSC) is gaining momentum and is all set to be launched on February 22^nd.

The farmers are protesting against the government over the unfair compensation for land acquisition for the Bharat Mala project, according to Sarwan Singh Pandher, the general secretary of the organization.

After the union meeting, Pandher claimed that vulnerable and economically weaker farmers were paid much less for compensation than their socially stronger counterparts. Moreover, according to him, the administration has not yet clarified why the disparity in compensation has taken place for the adjacent plots.

The “Rail Roko” protest will be witnessing the participation of thousands of farmers and women at Gurdaspur.  The KMSC Leaders stated their other demands as well, including the release of sugarcane dues, compensation, and jobs the for kin of farmers who had died during the farmer protests of 2020-2021.

They also said the Centre had not yet come forth with the legal stamp on MSP. Farmers have been seeking for the MSP to be protected by law. As a result, farmers have been forced to get down on the streets to express their dissonance.

At the same time, the Jamhoori Kisan Sabha members organized an open meeting with the public at the Raipur village. They also demanded that the government fix MSP for all its’ crops, including vegetables. They also demanded that milk have an MSP too.

“We place demands that the purchase, storage, and distribution of food products should be done through public sector units. We do not want the interferences of corporate sectors in storage.” The Jamhoori Kisan Sabha president Dr. Satnam Singh Ajnala stated. They also demanded a new agricultural policy and revision of existing policies to ensure that the interests of the food producers stand protected.