NEW DELHI
\nThousands of Indian farmers cleared their protest sites on the outskirts of New Delhi, ending their yearlong demonstrations as Prime Minister Narendra Modi\u2019s government repealed its controversial agricultural reforms.
\nFarmers from the states of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, where the country\u2019s agriculture is concentrated, dismantled their camps in the capital where they have protested since last year against three laws passed in September 2020 that deregulated the agricultural sector.
\nAfter repealing the laws in late November, the government on Thursday also agreed to accept other demands that included the dropping of all legal cases filed against farmers over the demonstrations, the legalization of the minimum support price for agricultural goods, and compensation to the families of protesters who lost their lives over the past year.
\nCelebrating their win on Saturday, farmers began returning home. \u201cNo doubt it\u2019s a major democratic victory of common farmers,\u201d Avatar Kaurjiwala, who arrived to protest in Delhi from Patiala district in Punjab, told Arab News.
\nKaurjiwala, 55, was staying at a demonstration site in Delhi\u2019s Singhu area since November last year.
\n\u201cFrom day one, we were adamant that we would make this government bend and accept our demand because the three farm laws were a threat to the survival of farming communities in India,\u201d he said.
\nOver 50 percent of India\u2019s workforce is dependent on agriculture, and farmers\u2019 biggest fear was that the controversial farm laws would leave them at the mercy of corporations and market forces, drastically reducing their incomes.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s also a lesson for the corporate sector that they cannot run roughshod over the government and take the people of the country for granted,\u201d Kaurjiwala added.
\nCharanpreet Brar from the northern Indian state of Rajasthan also spent more than a year at a protest site in Delhi.
\n\u201cWe have planned a celebration in my district in Hanumangarh, Rajasthan, today, once we get there later in the evening,\u201d Brar said.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s time for farmers across states to consolidate their power and unite on a single platform. I am sure after this that no government will take us for granted.\u201d
\nAs they marched from the capital to their home districts, they were welcomed by local residents with garlands and food at some stopping points.
\nSarwan Pandher, a farmer leader from Punjab, said such gestures showed \u201cwe were right in our agitation, and the farmers\u2019 movement reinforced people\u2019s trust in democracy.
\n\u201cThere is a sense of satisfaction and elation that we are returning home.\u201d
\n\u201cThe biggest challenge was to take on the large section of the government-supported media,\u201d Hrinder Happy, a researcher who joined the movement last year and looked after its media relations, told Arab News. \u201cBut gradually, farmers with their sheer sincerity managed to turn the narrative to their cause.\u201d
\nFarmer union leaders have announced they would meet again in mid-January to review the implementation of the new concessions pledged by the government.
\nThe concessions came as Uttar Pradesh and Punjab, where agriculture dominates the economy, will hold local elections next year.
\nFarmers are the most influential voting bloc, and winning the local polls may prove crucial for India\u2019s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party\u2019s victory in general elections in 2024.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NEW DELHI Thousands of Indian farmers cleared their protest sites on the outskirts of New Delhi, ending their yearlong demonstrations as Prime Minister Narendra Modi\u2019s government repealed its controversial agricultural reforms. Farmers from the states of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, where the country\u2019s agriculture is concentrated, dismantled their camps in the capital where they […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-232550","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n