A walk to stress on farmers issues

Nashik: Farmers led by the Kisan Sabha will begin a long march to Mumbai from

Nashik on Tuesday to highlight various farmers’ issues including compensation for natural disasters, farmers’ suicides and loan waivers.

Kisan Sabha’s state general secretary Dr Ajit Nawale said on Monday that march would take six days and reach the state legislature in Mumbai on March 12. 

“We will stage an indefinite gherao (picket) of the legislature which will be under session. This gherao will continue until our demands are met,” he said.

The Kisan Sabha maintains that, the position of farmers has become pathetic due to various government policies coupled with natural disasters. Hence depressed farmers are committing suicides. 

Even after the announcement of the loan waiver scheme, about 1,753 farmers have committed suicides and so the Kisan Sabha has decided to struggle for farmers’ rights, a press release stated. 

“Roughly 40,000 farmers will begin the Long March from CBS bus station in Nashik city at 3 pm on Tuesday. Farmers in the villages along the highway will join the march, swelling the ranks and about 1,00,000farmers will reach Mumbai. Dr Ashok Dhawale and senior leaders will lead the march,” Dr Nawale said.

The Kisan Sabha had staged a gherao in CBS Nashik in 2016 and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had accepted the farmers’ demands.

The various demands include, unconditional withdrawal of loans, giving forest land to those farmers, who are cultivating it, government guarantee of remunerative prices for farm produce, implementation of Swaminathan Commi-ssion recommendations, etc.