-TheWire.in While the protests have been triggered by the passing of the three new farm laws, the farmers’ demands are not restricted to them. The Wire explains the concerns. Farmers who have been protesting at the borders of Delhi for the last two weeks – and in their states for almost three months now – rejected proposals by the Central government to amend the controversial new farm laws. They argued that the...

-The Indian Express For a healthy agrarian sector, the state must strengthen and protect the position of the cultivator. As long as land acquisition continues at its current pace, there is little chance of that happening. As farmers from Punjab and Haryana force the central government into unconditional talks, demanding nothing less than a repeal of the three new farm laws, the BJP-led NDA government insists the reforms are “farmer-friendly”. The farm...

-Down to Earth Why are farmers protesting the government’s ’reforms’, ask many. A look at how Bihar’s farmers have fared may explain The recent controversy about India’s newly minted farm laws have brought back into focus what Nitish Kumar did a decade-and-a-half ago: Shutting down the mandi (wholesale markets for agricultural produce) system in 2006. The much-touted ‘reform’ has impacted the state’s farmers, and not in a good way. Farmers have had to...

-The Telegraph Narendra Modi’s agricultural reforms have angered farmers The farmers’ protest near New Delhi is a major political event challenging the Narendra Modi government. The participation is widespread and it is growing by the day. That farmers have been unhappy with their economic condition was evident from the number of marches to Delhi during the past two years. This time the protest is about three bills passed in Parliament in September...

-TheIndiaForum.in The protests in Punjab are happening at a time when the agrarian economy is under stress. With increasing uncertainty, previously antagonistic groups across classes, castes & gender are coming closer, building a broader base for the agitation & beyond. Punjab’s farmers have been unrelenting in their opposition to the new farm laws passed in September. Their sustained and creative opposition continues to make headlines. The central government too remains adamant and...