What’s happening?

In September 2020, the Indian government passed 3 agricultural reform bills that will change how the farming industry has worked for decades

Prime Minister Modi has refused to change his mind about the new laws and has offered to delay them for 18 months
Agricultural union representatives that oppose the bills have met with government officials in 11 rounds of talks that have led to no resolution
Farmers protested locally for months until tens of thousands of farmers from all states, largely from Punjab and Haryana, travelled to Delhi to block the roads and demand that the bills be revoked
Throughout the largely peaceful protests, farmers were met with extreme violence by Indian police forces and and are being labelled as terrorists and anti-nationalists
Police have fired back with tear gas, water cannons, barricades and beatings
Indian government has shut off access to internet, water and electricity and jailed protestors, farmers, journalists and activists in response

Why are farmers protesting?

All 3 reform bills will allow large corporate players to play a greater role in a fragmented and deregulated market structure
Farmers fear that this will shift power away from them and over to big players in dictating prices due to little oversight
These bills were passed undemocratically with little discussion or involvement from key stakeholders
Farmers’ livelihoods are at stake and they fear operating at the mercy of large corporations and ultimately being pushed into poverty
Farmers have been protesting since August 2020, before all 3 bills were passed and dozens of protestors have died from severe weather conditions, health conditions, and suicide

Raise awareness on the violence farmers are facing throughout the ongoing protests

Donate to organizations below that provide food, education and services to farmers at the protests as well as to struggling farmers across the nation in need

Researched and Compiled by Anu Upadhyay