Farmers' Protest: Centre Ready To Resume Dialogue Over Agri Laws, But Unions Unmoved

So far, the government has held 11 rounds of talks, the last being on January 22, with the farmers' unions to end the agitation over the laws enacted in September 2020.

New Delhi: In a much-need breakthrough for farmers, Centre on Wednesday announced that it is ready to resume dialogue with agitating farmers' unions to resolve their objections to the three new agri laws.

"Whenever farmers want discussions, the government of India will be ready for discussion. But we have repeatedly asked them to tell the objections in the provisions with logic. We will listen and find a solution," Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said during a cabinet briefing.

However, farmers remained adamant on their demands for a repeal of the legislations and a legal guarantee on the minimum support price (MSP).

"Farmers demand a full repeal of the three central laws and a new legislation to guarantee minimum support price (MSP) for all farmers," said a statement by Samyukta Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of agitating farmer unions.

So far, the government has held 11 rounds of talks, the last being on January 22, with the farmers' unions to end the agitation over the laws enacted in September 2020.

Meanwhile, government has insisted that they will help increase the income of farmers and has said it can consider amendments after talks with the unions.

Centre offer to resume dialogue with farmers comes after Union Cabinet approved an increase in MSP for various kharif crops or the summer-sown crops for marketing season 2021-22.

Talks between Centre and farmers' unions have not resumed following widespread violence during a tractor rally on January 26 during which protesters stormed the Red Fort and hoisted a religious flag.

"All political parties of the country wanted to bring the farm laws, but they could not gather the courage to bring them. Modi government took this big step in the interest of farmers and brought reforms. Farmers got the benefit of that in several parts of the country. But in the meantime, farmers' agitation started," Tomar said at the Cabinet briefing.

Supreme Court has asked Centre to halt the implementation of the three contentious laws till further orders and set up a committee to find a solution. Farmers, mainly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh continue camp at several borders of the national capital for more than six months now, though their numbers have thinned due to the ongoing second wave of Coronavirus. 

Farmer groups have claimed that the new passed agri laws will end the mandi and MSP procurement systems and leave the farmers at the mercy of big corporates, even as the government has rejected these apprehensions as misplaced.