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ISSUE DATE: April 26, 2021
UPDATED: April 17, 2021 14:27 IST
Procurement time, Wheat being loaded onto a truck at a mandi
in Amritsar during the Covid lockdown, May 2020
Faced with pressure from the Centre, Punjab is moving towards direct benefit transfer (DBT) to farmers for grain procured for the national granary this season. Fifteen other states that procure grain and other agricultural produce for central agencies, too, have started paying farmers directly or have agreed in principle to do so. This replaces the age-old system of paying farmers through ‘arthiyas’ or procurement agents.
Arthiyas facilitate trade in APMC (Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee) mandis for a fee. In Punjab, the total market charges for trade in agricultural produce is about 9.5 per cent of the crop value, including the 2.5 per cent commission paid to arthiyas. The state’s farmer unions, which are agitating against the new central farm laws, want the arthiya system to continue.
April 15, 2021
Farmers sitting in protest against the farm laws at the Singhu border, in New Delhi - Sushil Kumar Verma
Farmers sitting in protest against the farm laws at the Singhu border, in New Delhi - Sushil Kumar Verma×
‘If the government wants to adopt a humanitarian approach, they should provide free vaccination in Tikri, Singhu’ Even as Delhi is facing an extraordinary surge in Covid-19 cases, farmers protesting at the Singhu and Tikri borders say they follow stringent social distancing norms, have set up vaccination facilities at the protest sites and are urging governments in Haryana and Punjab to initiate vaccine drives.
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2 BKU leader Joginder Singh Ugrahan addresses gathering during farmers conference on Baisakhi at Talwandi Sabo on Tuesday. Tribune photo: Pawan Sharma
Sukhmeet Bhasin
Talwandi Sabo, April 13
For the first time, farmers organised a “Kisan Conference” on the occasion of Baisakhi at Talwandi Sabo.
BKU Ekta-Ugrahan president Joginder Singh Ugrahan announced that he would continue his struggle for the rollback of ‘black’ agricultural laws introduced by the Narendra Modi government and “complete liberation from the imperialist plunder of the agricultural sector”.
He also announced that on April 21 a large convoy of thousands of farmers, youth and women from all over the state would again march towards Delhi under the leadership of union general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokri Kalan and Jhanda Singh Jethuke.
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Ravinder Saini
Jhajjar, April 10
Colourful tents, youths driving flag-bearing tractors with blasting music, local men in traditional attire smoking hookah in groups and women preparing variety of food items in langar at different points, such was the scene on 1-km-stretch of the KMP Expressway near Bahadurgarh on Saturday.
24-hour blockade
Farmers on Saturday began a 24-hour blockade of the KMP Expressway following a call by Samyukt Kisan Morcha to protest the farm laws
To lift the spirits of protesters in scorching heat, youths played music on tractors and women prepared a variety of food items in langar
Farmers started the 24-hour blockade of the KMP and KGP expressways today following a call given by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha in protest against the three farm laws.