Indian farmers launch nationwide strike as protest brings Delhi to a standstill

A nihang, or Sikh warrior, displays his martial art skills during the strikes

Credit: AP Photo/Altaf Qadri

Indian farmers have escalated their peaceful protests against reforms deregulating the agricultural sector, blocking railway tracks and highways across the country.

In addition to disrupted travel, supplies of fresh food were affected across the country.

The protest movement — backed by India’s opposition parties — has snowballed since controversial agricultural reforms were announced in September, with farmers arguing the sudden removal of guaranteed pricing for their crops would decimate their livelihoods.

Five previous rounds of meetings between farmers’ union leaders and the government have been inconclusive, with neither side prepared to compromise.

Growing anger culminated in approximately 300,000 farmers, from the largely rural states of the Punjab and Haryana, marching on New Delhi and occupying its surrounding roads in late November.

Police initially tried to remove the protesters by using tear gas and water cannon but this was halted after it attracted major international criticism and resulted in the death of at least one protester.

Farmers father at the Delhi-Haryana state border 

Credit: AP Photo/Altaf Qadri

Farmers say they will continue their sit-in outside the capital city and also plan further nationwide strikes until the agricultural reforms are repealed.

“The government is testing our patience but we will not budge,” farmer Raminder Singh from the northern state of Uttar Pradesh told AFP.

“Today’s strike was symbolic and if the government doesn’t listen to us, we will shut the entire country [down] in the coming days.”

More than half of Indians are employed in agriculture and the ongoing demonstrations have attracted support, with truck drivers and teachers joining the nationwide strikes on Tuesday.

The reforms will see fixed prices for agricultural produce scrapped and force Indian farmers to instead individually negotiate the sale of their produce to large private corporates.

Stranded commuters on a local train in Kolkata

Credit: AP Photo/Bikas Das

Approximately two-thirds of India’s farmers are small-holders with less than one hectare of land. They say their lack of bargaining power with the private sector will force them to then sell their crops at a lower price.

India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) argues the reforms are necessary to stimulate growth in its private agricultural sector.

Many Indian farmers’ livelihoods had already become precarious due to rising land costs and 2016’s demonetisation policy, which wiped out some farmers’ cash savings overnight.

The protests mark rare mass public opposition to the ruling BJP and India’s fragmented opposition parties are encouraging their citizens to protest.

The Chief Minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal, who belongs to the opposition Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), says he has been under house arrest since Monday after attempting to visit protesters on the outskirts of Delhi. 

The Delhi Police denied the claim but photos on social media emerged of a barricade which has been constructed around Mr Kejriwal’s house.