Protesting Farmers and Centre Conclude Fifth Round of Talks; Next Meeting Scheduled for February 22

Chandigarh, Feb 14 (NationPress) The fifth round of discussions, marking a nearly year-long hiatus, took place between protesting farmers — primarily from Punjab and Haryana — and the central delegation led by Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Pralhad Joshi. The meeting concluded on Friday with both parties agreeing to convene again on February 22, with the participation of Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

The location of this upcoming meeting is expected to be either New Delhi or Chandigarh.

A 28-member farmer delegation, including fasting leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal and Sarwan Singh Pandher, participated in the discussions aimed at addressing their concerns, including a legal guarantee for minimum support price (MSP).

Post-meeting, Dallewal, who arrived after a four-hour journey in an ambulance, informed the media that the government extended another invitation to farmers for a meeting on February 22, which will include the attendance of Shivraj Singh Chouhan. “The meeting concluded positively, and the government has called for another session on February 22, to be attended by Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan along with two other ministers. The venue could either be Delhi or Chandigarh, with the final decision pending,” he stated.

According to official sources, the nearly three-hour meeting was conducted in a friendly atmosphere, with both parties sharing a meal at the venue. Participants included Punjab Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian, Chief Secretary KAP Sinha, DGP Gaurav Yadav, and Additional Chief Secretary (Agriculture) Anurag Verma.

The protesting farmers and the Centre have engaged in four rounds of discussions, with the last meeting occurring on February 18, 2024. During that meeting, the Union government proposed a five-year contract to purchase pulses, maize, and cotton at MSP, which farmers ultimately rejected.

Union Minister Joshi was accompanied by Devesh Chaturvedi, Union Secretary of Agriculture, Farmers Welfare. This recent meeting follows four rounds of negotiations between the central government and the protesting farmers that took place in February of the previous year.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann attended meetings on February 8, 12, 15, and 18 of last year, but those discussions did not yield conclusive outcomes. Farmers have maintained a sit-in protest for a year at Shambhu, the border area between Punjab and Haryana.

Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher addressed the media at Shambhu, where a Mahapanchayat took place on Thursday to commemorate one year of the agitation, stating their commitment to persuading the Centre to address farmers' demands.

Both the Dallewal-led Bharatiya Kisan Union (Sidhupur) and the Pandher-led Kisan Mazdoor Sangarsh Committee (KMSC), united under the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political), have been stationed at the Shambhu and Khanauri borders since February 13 of last year, after security forces thwarted their attempt to march to Delhi to advocate for their demands.

Previously, security forces employed tear gas shells as farmers made three attempts to march toward Delhi at the Shambhu border.

Shambhu, located near Ambala on National Highway-1, has become a focal point of the farmers’ protest for the past year. The previous 13-month-long agitation of farmers, predominantly from Punjab, Haryana, and western Uttar Pradesh, at the borders of Delhi concluded after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the repeal of the three contentious farm laws in a televised address to the nation on November 19, 2021.

Thousands of farmers had been stationed at the Delhi border points, demanding not only the repeal of the three farm laws but also a legal assurance on the MSP for their crops.