‘Will reach solution’, says Agri Minister as govt holds meeting with farmers

The government on Tuesday expressed confidence that it will reach a solution after discussing issues raised by protesting farmers, as a meeting got underway between union ministers and representatives of over 30 farmer organisations.

For the meeting at Vigyan Bhawan here, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar was accompanied by Railways and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Commerce Som Parkash, also an MP from Punjab.

“We are ready for a discussion to resolve their issues. Let’s see,” Tomar told reporters as he arrived for the meeting.

Follow all the live updates of Farmers’ protest against farm laws

He further said the government will arrive at a solution after hearing the representatives of the farmer organisations.

Hours before the meeting. Union ministers Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Tomar and Goyal, along with BJP chief J P Nadda, had held marathon discussions over the farmers’ protest against the Centre’s new agriculture reform laws.

Peaceful sit-ins by farmers, mostly from Punjab and Haryana, continued at the Singhu and Tikri borders with no untoward incident reported after Friday’s violence, while the numbers of protestors swelled at the Ghazipur border on Monday.

The opposition parties too stepped up the pressure, asking the Centre to “respect the democratic struggle” of the farmers and repeal the laws.

The farmers have expressed apprehension that the Centre’s farm laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price system, leaving them at the “mercy” of big corporates.

The government has maintained that the new laws will bring farmers better opportunities and usher in new technologies in agriculture.