Amid the prevailing deadlock between farmers and the Central government over the new farm laws, the agitation of farmers entered the 32nd day on Monday.
With the cold wave prevailing in the region, farmers at the Ghazipur border were seen comforting themselves before small log fires.
Thousands of farmers have been protesting since last month at the Singhu border against the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. They are demanding the repeal of the three laws.
Enacted in September, the three farm laws have been projected by the Centre as major reforms in the agriculture sector that will remove the middlemen and allow farmers to sell their produce anywhere in the country.
However, the protesting farmers have expressed the apprehension that the new laws would pave the way for eliminating the safety cushion of the MSP and do away with the "mandi" (wholesale market) system, leaving them at the mercy of big corporates.
The protests at the Ghazipur border that started on November 28 entered the 30th day today.
Farmer unions have held several rounds of talks with the government and attended a meeting called by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Meanwhile, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, a joint front of almost 40 farmer organisations, wrote a letter to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare accepting the Centre's offer for dialogue and proposed December 29 as the next date for the meeting.
