Chandigarh, February 16, 2025 (Bharat Khabarnama Bureau) – The Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), known for leading the massive 2020-21 Delhi border protests, has announced an indefinite protest in Chandigarh starting March 5 to oppose the National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing (NPFAM).
Labeling the NPFAM as “highly dangerous” for farmers, SKM has alleged that the policy is designed to favor corporate interests and is a covert attempt to reintroduce the now-repealed farm laws. This fresh agitation would add to the ongoing protests at the Haryana-Punjab borders in Shambhu and Khanauri, where SKM (Non-Political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha have been demonstrating since February last year.
The SKM has urged the Punjab government to convene a special assembly session and pass a resolution rejecting the draft policy. Besides this, the government should fulfill its promise of providing Minimum Support Price (MSP) at the state level.
They have demanded for reviving the debt waiver scheme which was initiated by the previous Congress government but remained incomplete. In addition to this, farmers have demanded compensation for crop damage and livestock losses as the Punjab government has failed to provide.
Seeking justice for families of martyred farmers during the Kisan Andolan, the SKM has expressed anger over the delay in full compensation to families of farmers who lost their lives during the Delhi protests. They have also demanded the withdrawal of all cases registered against farmers during various agitations.
Demanding legal guarantee of MSP, the leaders reiterated their demand for a legal right to MSP on all crops, based on the C2+50% cost formula recommended by the Swaminathan Commission.
Announcing the Chandigarh protest, SKM leaders Buta Singh Burjgil, Balbir Singh Rajewal, Lakhwinder Singh Lakhowal, Raminder Singh Patiala, and Ruldu Singh Mansa stated that a “pucca morcha” (permanent protest) would begin on March 5. They emphasized that if the Punjab government didn’t fulfilled their demands, farmers would march toward the Chief Minister’s residence.
The decision to hold protests at state capitals was taken in SKM’s national general house meeting in Delhi on January 24. However, Punjab farmers, under the SKM banner, have decided to escalate their movement in Chandigarh due to the state government’s continued neglect of their demands.
With tensions rising and thousands of farmers expected to gather, this protest is set to be a major challenge for the Punjab government in the coming weeks.
