The ‘Kisan Mukti Yatra’ by the All India Kisan Sangharsh Samanvay Samiti (All India Farmers Struggle Coordination Committee) in memory of the farmers killed in police firing in Mandsaur began from Pipalyamandi in Mandsaur on 6 July. The Yatra, raising the issues of loan waiver and minimum support price at 1 ½ times the cost of crop production, is proceeding through Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana and will reach Delhi on 18 July, passing through historic farmer struggle sites like Bardoli and Khera on the way.
The AIKM strongly condemned the arrest of Yatra Convener Dr Sunilam, in a desperate attempt by the Government to stall the Yatra.
The Yatra’s demands – which are unanimous among all farmers across the country – are as follows:
1. Farmers should get a purchase price which is 50% more than the cost of crop production. Every farmer in the country should get this price for every crop and under any circumstances. If the farmer is forced to sell his crop for a lesser price, the government should make up his loss.
2. For the farmer to make a new beginning with the profitable purchase price, there should be a one-time waiver of all loans (bank loans, co-operative loans, financial institution loans) as an interim arrangement. Arrangements should be made to waive moneylenders’ loans also.
Former MP Hannan Mollah (All India Kisan Sabha), Lok Sabha MP Raju Shetty (Swabhimani Shetkari Sangathan), former MLA Dr Sunilam (NAPM), Yogendra Yadav (Jai Kisan Andolan), Dasrath Kumar (Rashtriya Kisan Samanvay Samiti) and Dr Ashish Mittal (All India Kisan Mazdoor Sabha) as well as AIKMS National President Ruldu Singh (Punjab), National Secretary Ishwari Prasad Kushwaha (UP), Purushottam Sharma (Uttarakhand), Devendra Singh Chouhan (MP), Prem Singh Gehlawat (Haryana),Umesh Singh (Bihar), Gurnam Singh (Punjab), Subhash Kakushte and Rajendra Bhavuke (Maharashtra) are among the peasants’ organisation leaders participating in the Yatra. All India Kisan Mazdoor Sabha (Punjab, Telengana, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal), Karnataka State Raiyot Sangh, Telengana Rayatu Joint Action Committee, Lok Sangharsh Morcha (Maharashtra, Gujarat), Raiyatu Swaraj Vedika, Federation of Kaveri Delta Farmers’ Association (Tamil Nadu), and Paschim Odisha Krishak Sangathan. Apart from these, two all India coordinations, Rashtriya Kisan Samanvay Samiti and Bhumi Adhikar Andolan have also joined this campaign. The Rashtriya Kisan Sangh breakaway group led by Gurnam Singh, Harpal Singh, and Kakka Ji had already joined this initiative earlier.
Thus this Coordination has become the biggest alliance of farmers’ organizations from all over the country since the past many decades.
