INDIA : Farmers protest anti-farmer policies of the government

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Dear friends, On October 31, 2007, farmers from all over the country made a protest march in the Capital city of New Delhi denouncing the anti-farmer policies of the government. We demanded that the minimum support price for paddy be raised to at least Rs 1,000 a quintal (Rs 10,000 a tonne). The minimum support price for wheat be also raised to the import parity price. Government isimporting wheat at Rs 16,000 a tonne. Farmers also asked for substantial hike in minimum support prices for all crops, including lentils and pulses, cotton, coarse cereals. Please open attachment (jpg file) to view the protest march. I, Krishan Bir Chaudhary in Orange is in the front row FIFTH from the LEFT and SIXTH from the RIGHT. Just next to me FOURTH from the LEFT is another prominent farmer

leader, Atul Kumar Anjan, general secretary of All India Kisan Sabha. The former Union minister for rural development, Yerran Naidu is seen in the front row FOURTH from the RIGHT. Peasants from Communist Party of India and the major paddy producing province in the country, Andhra Pradesh joined us in large number. The farmers also demanded adequately raising applied tariff on cotton to prevent cheap import of cotton, immediate payment of arrears by sugar mills to cane growers and disbursement of credit by banks at an interest rate of 4% or below. Further Indian farmers demanded repeal of various anti-farmer legislations passed by the government like the Special Economic Zone Act, Amendments to the Patent Act, Food Standards and Safety Act. Indian farmers also demanded that the government while making amendments to the Seeds Act should consider

the pro-farmer recommendations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee. I had personally appeared before the Parliamentary Standing Committee headed by Ram Gopal Yadav and pleaded for removal of anti-farmer proposals made by the government in the proposed Amendment Bill which suggested greater control of Coporate houses over seeds. Farmers have been the owner of seeds since centuries. The Plant Varieties Protection & Farmers' Rights Act has acknowledged farmers' ownership over seeds. Hence there is no need for another Act to regulate seed. If need be the Seed Act should be scrapped. Indian farmers have demanded a complete moratorium on GM crops, scrapping of India-US Knowledge Initiative in Agriculture and ban on futures trading in agro commodities in the country. They have said that government's

bio-fuel programme would endanger food security. We have also demanded a ban on the entry of corporate houses and multinational companies in the retail chain and in agricultural marketing. Dr KRISHAN BIR CHAUDHARY President, Bharatiya Krishak Samaj (Indian farmers' organisation) INDIAN SOCIETY FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT New Delhi INDIA

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