With growing opposition against the Farm Bills, protests were held in various cities of Tamil Nadu on Friday as part of the nation-wide bandh against the “farm reforms”. Led by the Tamil Nadu Farmers’ Association President P. Ayyakannu, farmers sat outside the Collector’s office in Trichy with human skulls, chained hands, and nooses around their necks to demonstrate against the Agri Bills passed by the parliament.
Farmers also protested against the Bills in Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Tiruppur and Namakkal districts. In Nagapattinam district and at a couple of other places, members of the Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India-Marxist protested on the roads against the Bills. In Tambaram near here, farmers and members of the CPI-M also protested against the Bills. Meanwhile, Agriculture Minister R. Doraikkannu said the Bills will not impact the farmers in Tamil Nadu.
According to Agriculture Secretary Gagandeep Singh Bedi, it was Tamil Nadu that first brought in a law for contract farming in the country, and he also assured that the farmers will get the contracted price from the corporates irrespective of market fluctuations. Chief Minister K. Palaniswami has also supported the Bills, saying they are beneficial for the state’s farmers.