Civil Society News, New Delhi
Published: Jun. 29, 2023
Farmers had come together out of fear of losing their lands to corporations. Their protests warded off this danger, but achieved little else. Once the new laws were scrapped and the agitation called off, disparate unions that had united under pressure from ordinary farmers soon fell apart. https://www.civilsocietyonline.com/interviews/its-stupid-to-take-people-off-farms-to-use-them-as-cheap-labour/#:~:text='Stupid%20to%20take%20people%20off%20farms%20for%20cheap%20labour',-Civil%20Society%20News
It has been two years now, but demands such as legally guaranteed minimum support prices, mandis in easy reach and investments in rural infrastructure remain to be addressed. The more complex goals of preparing farmers for the effects of global warming, reducing chemicals in farming and widening the basket of crops so as to promote sustainability and nutrition have also not got the attention they deserve.
For a better understanding, Civil Society spoke to Devinder Sharma, senior journalist and researcher based in Punjab, who works at field level and is an insightful voice on Indian agriculture.