Protesting farmer unions announce ‘resistance week’ from today

Samyukta Kisan Morcha, a collective of over 40 farmer unions, announced a week-long “resistance week” beginning Tuesday and invited more farmers to reach the protest site with the slogan “phir Dilli chalo”.

With the Delhi government announcing a week-long curfew to tackle the surge in Covid-19 cases, protesting farmers at the capital’s borders – Singhu, Tikri, and Ghaziabad – said they fear that the government would use Covid as a “pretext” to clear the protest sites. To pre-empt any such attempt, the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Ugrahan) and Samyukta Kisan Morcha have called upon its members to reach Tikri Border from April 21 to intensify the agitation.

Farmers staging a protest. (Representative image)

Samyukta Kisan Morcha, a collective of over 40 farmer unions, announced a week-long “resistance week” beginning Tuesday and invited more farmers to reach the protest site with the slogan “phir Dilli chalo”.

“Because it is the harvesting season, many farmers had returned to villages. There are indications that the government is plotting to end the peasant movement on the pretext of the Covid pandemic,” SKM said in a statement on Monday.

Farmer leader Darshan Pal said vaccination camps will be started at protest sites and mask awareness and compliance will be encouraged. He said all medical camps will be equipped to handle and provide care to any suspected patients.