<p>It was on the 54th day of farm leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal’s fast unto death last month that the central government finally broke its silence by assigning agriculture ministry officials to convey its decision to open dialogue. This move came after previous attempts, including appeals by a Supreme Court-nominated committee, failed to resolve the stand-off. Farm leaders protesting at the Punjab-Haryana Khanauri border cautiously welcomed the Centre’s proposal for talks slated for February 14 in Chandigarh on their long-pending issues, describing it as “a door has opened.” While Dallewal agreed to medical aid via intravenous drips, he remained adamant about abstaining from food or liquids other than water until all demands were met. This has heightened concerns about his health and the viability of the upcoming talks.</p>.<p>In the past, the government has largely been tight-lipped about the farmers’ demands. While it repealed three controversial farm laws in 2022 after a historic 13-month protest during which 700 farmers lost their lives, it has remained largely unresponsive to subsequent issues including the legal guarantee for payment of minimum support price (MSP) for 23 notified crops, including cereals, pulses, coarse grains and edible oil seeds. The repeal, which was rushed through Parliament ahead of Assembly elections in the agrarian states of Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, showcased political will when necessary. Notably, only two factions have been invited to the meeting: the Dallewal-led Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) and the Sarwan Singh Pandher-led Kisan Mazdoor Morcha. These groups, initially part of the broader Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), have since splintered, reflecting divisions among farmer leaders. These factions, however, continue to flag SKM’s issues such as legal MSP guarantee, loan waiver, pension for farmers, freezing electricity tariffs, and among others, restoring the original Land Acquisition Act of 2013 for fairer compensation.</p>.<p>These divisions have partly been fuelled by behind-the-scenes efforts to weaken the once-unified SKM, a conglomeration of farmer and farm-labour organisations. Even though farm leader Rakesh Singh Tikait recently courted arrest at NOIDA, with the protesting farmers seeking proper compensation for their acquired land, his Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) is excluded from the forthcoming talks. Even so, BKU maintains that any progress benefiting the farming community is welcome. On the other hand, Abhimanyu Kohar, speaking to this writer for SKM (non-political), underscored that only Dallewal and Pandher groups will participate in the talks. This exclusion of key voices underscores the erosion of farmer unity, potentially weakening their collective bargaining power.</p>.<p>The government wants to pick up the strings from where the two sides had left in February 2024. During those talks, on the eve of the Lok Sabha elections, the government proposed purchasing select crops – urad, moong, tur, cotton, and maize – at MSP for five years through cooperative agencies under a contract farming model. Farmer groups rejected this offer, calling it a repackaging of contract farming provisions in the now-repealed farm laws which they had strongly opposed as “pro-corporate” and “anti-farmer”. Subsequently, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance returned to power albeit with fewer seats for the BJP who then took support of political allies to form the government at the Centre. This, however, does not seem to have impacted its positioning with the farmers.</p>.<p><strong>The MSP gaps</strong></p>.<p>No matter which group, at the heart of the farmers’ protests is the demand for a legally binding MSP to protect farmers from exploitation by traders and middlemen. With over 85% of farmers holding less than one hectare of land, challenges such as erratic weather, high input costs, lack of storage, and insufficient government procurement leave them vulnerable, often leading to financial distress, large unpaid loans, suicides and large-scale exodus. The current MSP system, often criticised for its methodology, use of dated data and inadequate implementation, is non-remunerative, making farming a loss-making activity. At the same time, there is a yawning gap between farm gate prices and costs to consumers that highlights the role of profiteering middlemen in the supply chain.</p>.<p>The government often portrays MSP payments as financial aid to farmers, rather than the cost of producing food grains essential to ensure food security and for feeding over 80 crore Indians through the Public Distribution System. Meanwhile, in the middle of the Delhi Assembly election, the government announced the 8th Pay Commission for its employees, further widening the disparity between salaried workers and farmers whose monthly household incomes lag far behind.</p>.<p>Farmers’ demands reflect not just immediate concerns but a desire for dignity and recognition of a sector that employs almost 50% of the country’s total workforce and contributes significantly to the country’s GDP. Resolving these issues is not about appeasement but ensuring long-term stability and security of the agricultural sector and its nearly 14 crore agriculturists. In the budget 2025-2026 proposals, the government has again stressed on contract farming of three pulses which cooperative agencies will procure over the next four years under the Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses. There was no word on mandatory MSP payment which is the foremost demand of farmers, on doubling farmers’ income or on incentivising organic/natural farming. Enhancement of credit and borrowings under the Kisan Credit Card limits will only push small and marginal farmers into further debt if there are no assured returns for their produce.</p>.<p>For now, this third attempt at finding a meeting point looks like a long haul especially as the fasting Dallewal with deteriorating health has been made to wait for several days before the government turned its attention to the demands. Meanwhile, it is business as usual with the announcement of the 8th Pay Commission, Budget 2025-26 presentation in Parliament, Delhi elections, and so on – quite contrary to what Jawaharlal Nehru once famously said, “Everything else can wait, but not agriculture”. Unless there is political will, the forthcoming talks are likely to remain log jammed.</p>.<p><em>(The writer is a senior journalist based in New Delhi)</em></p>
<p>It was on the 54th day of farm leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal’s fast unto death last month that the central government finally broke its silence by assigning agriculture ministry officials to convey its decision to open dialogue. This move came after previous attempts, including appeals by a Supreme Court-nominated committee, failed to resolve the stand-off. Farm leaders protesting at the Punjab-Haryana Khanauri border cautiously welcomed the Centre’s proposal for talks slated for February 14 in Chandigarh on their long-pending issues, describing it as “a door has opened.” While Dallewal agreed to medical aid via intravenous drips, he remained adamant about abstaining from food or liquids other than water until all demands were met. This has heightened concerns about his health and the viability of the upcoming talks.</p>.<p>In the past, the government has largely been tight-lipped about the farmers’ demands. While it repealed three controversial farm laws in 2022 after a historic 13-month protest during which 700 farmers lost their lives, it has remained largely unresponsive to subsequent issues including the legal guarantee for payment of minimum support price (MSP) for 23 notified crops, including cereals, pulses, coarse grains and edible oil seeds. The repeal, which was rushed through Parliament ahead of Assembly elections in the agrarian states of Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, showcased political will when necessary. Notably, only two factions have been invited to the meeting: the Dallewal-led Samyukta Kisan Morcha (non-political) and the Sarwan Singh Pandher-led Kisan Mazdoor Morcha. These groups, initially part of the broader Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), have since splintered, reflecting divisions among farmer leaders. These factions, however, continue to flag SKM’s issues such as legal MSP guarantee, loan waiver, pension for farmers, freezing electricity tariffs, and among others, restoring the original Land Acquisition Act of 2013 for fairer compensation.</p>.<p>These divisions have partly been fuelled by behind-the-scenes efforts to weaken the once-unified SKM, a conglomeration of farmer and farm-labour organisations. Even though farm leader Rakesh Singh Tikait recently courted arrest at NOIDA, with the protesting farmers seeking proper compensation for their acquired land, his Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) is excluded from the forthcoming talks. Even so, BKU maintains that any progress benefiting the farming community is welcome. On the other hand, Abhimanyu Kohar, speaking to this writer for SKM (non-political), underscored that only Dallewal and Pandher groups will participate in the talks. This exclusion of key voices underscores the erosion of farmer unity, potentially weakening their collective bargaining power.</p>.<p>The government wants to pick up the strings from where the two sides had left in February 2024. During those talks, on the eve of the Lok Sabha elections, the government proposed purchasing select crops – urad, moong, tur, cotton, and maize – at MSP for five years through cooperative agencies under a contract farming model. Farmer groups rejected this offer, calling it a repackaging of contract farming provisions in the now-repealed farm laws which they had strongly opposed as “pro-corporate” and “anti-farmer”. Subsequently, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance returned to power albeit with fewer seats for the BJP who then took support of political allies to form the government at the Centre. This, however, does not seem to have impacted its positioning with the farmers.</p>.<p><strong>The MSP gaps</strong></p>.<p>No matter which group, at the heart of the farmers’ protests is the demand for a legally binding MSP to protect farmers from exploitation by traders and middlemen. With over 85% of farmers holding less than one hectare of land, challenges such as erratic weather, high input costs, lack of storage, and insufficient government procurement leave them vulnerable, often leading to financial distress, large unpaid loans, suicides and large-scale exodus. The current MSP system, often criticised for its methodology, use of dated data and inadequate implementation, is non-remunerative, making farming a loss-making activity. At the same time, there is a yawning gap between farm gate prices and costs to consumers that highlights the role of profiteering middlemen in the supply chain.</p>.<p>The government often portrays MSP payments as financial aid to farmers, rather than the cost of producing food grains essential to ensure food security and for feeding over 80 crore Indians through the Public Distribution System. Meanwhile, in the middle of the Delhi Assembly election, the government announced the 8th Pay Commission for its employees, further widening the disparity between salaried workers and farmers whose monthly household incomes lag far behind.</p>.<p>Farmers’ demands reflect not just immediate concerns but a desire for dignity and recognition of a sector that employs almost 50% of the country’s total workforce and contributes significantly to the country’s GDP. Resolving these issues is not about appeasement but ensuring long-term stability and security of the agricultural sector and its nearly 14 crore agriculturists. In the budget 2025-2026 proposals, the government has again stressed on contract farming of three pulses which cooperative agencies will procure over the next four years under the Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses. There was no word on mandatory MSP payment which is the foremost demand of farmers, on doubling farmers’ income or on incentivising organic/natural farming. Enhancement of credit and borrowings under the Kisan Credit Card limits will only push small and marginal farmers into further debt if there are no assured returns for their produce.</p>.<p>For now, this third attempt at finding a meeting point looks like a long haul especially as the fasting Dallewal with deteriorating health has been made to wait for several days before the government turned its attention to the demands. Meanwhile, it is business as usual with the announcement of the 8th Pay Commission, Budget 2025-26 presentation in Parliament, Delhi elections, and so on – quite contrary to what Jawaharlal Nehru once famously said, “Everything else can wait, but not agriculture”. Unless there is political will, the forthcoming talks are likely to remain log jammed.</p>.<p><em>(The writer is a senior journalist based in New Delhi)</em></p>
