The 10-day long nationwide protest called by the farmers’ entered the third day today. The agitation is convened by Rashtriya Kisan Mahasangh which is the umbrella organisation with 100 outfits taking part under its aegis nationwide.
The farmers have called the strike to press for their demands of waiver of loans and the right price of crops. Farmers in different parts of the country were seen raising slogans and throwing vegetables and dairy products on the streets.
The protest it is likely to hit the supply of essential items like milk and vegetables in the days to come.
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Yesterday, the Haryana Chief Minister, Manohar Lal Khattar said that the reason for the protest was “non-issue”. “They don’t have any issue; they are just focusing on unnecessary things through this strike. Not selling produce will bring losses to the farmers only,” Khattar said.
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The strike started on June 1 when thousands of farmers from Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana started a 10-day nationwide strike demanding waiver of loans, right price for their crops and implementation of recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission.
The protests were also called to mark the first anniversary of the Mandsaur demonstration in Madhya Pradesh, in which six farmers were killed in police firing.
As part of the protest, farmers have shut down the supply of milk, vegetables and essential farm produce due to which the vegetable prices in the market have gone up.
On the last day of the protest on June 10, the farmers’ bodies will organize ‘Bharat Bandh’.