The 2020–2021 Indian farmers' protest was a protest against three farm acts passed by the Parliament of India in September 2020. The acts, often called the Farm Bills, had been described as "anti-farmer laws" by many farmer unions, and politicians from the opposition who said that the three laws would leave farmers at the "mercy of corporates" since the farmer-trader disputes were taken to SDM instead of judiciary. The protests demanded the creation of a minimum support price (MSP) bill, to ensure that corporates cannot control the prices. The Union Government, however, maintained that the laws would make it effortless for farmers to sell their produce directly to big buyers, and stated that the protests are based on misinformation. Related endemic legacy issues include farmer suicides and low farmer incomes. Despite India being largely self-sufficient in foodgrain production and having welfare schemes, hunger and nutrition remain serious issues, with India ranking as one of the worst countries in the world in food security parameters. Due to unfulfilled previous demands 2024 Indian farmers' protest started on 13 of February 2024.
Soon after the acts were introduced, unions began holding local protests, mostly in Punjab state. After two months of protests, farmer unions—mainly from Punjab and neighbouring Haryana—began a movement named Dilli Chalo (transl. Let's go to Delhi), in which tens of thousands of union members marched towards the nation's capital. The Indian government ordered the police and law enforcement of various states to stop the protesters using water cannons, batons, and tear gas to prevent them entering Haryana and then Delhi. November 2020 saw a nationwide general strike in support of the farmers and thousands converging at various border points on the way to Delhi. Eleven rounds of talks took place between the central government and farmers represented by the farm unions between 14 October 2020 and 22 January 2021; all were inconclusive with agreement on only two relatively minor points. Smaller but richer states of Haryana and Punjab, with large surplus food production, are the massive provider of food security to India as they provide 70-90% of wheat and 28-44% of rice of India's total PDS. Hence, farm reform was considered to be a more sensitive issue in these food surplus states as compared to other net food consumer states with negative food security such as BIMARU states.
While a section of farmer unions was protesting, the Indian government claimed that some unions had come out in support of the farm laws. By mid-December 2020, the Supreme Court of India had received a batch of petitions asking for the removal of blockades created by the protesters around Delhi. Farmers said that they will not listen to the courts if told to back off, and that staying the implementation of the farm laws was not a solution. This was also the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, in light of which the central government had put in place a nation-wide lockdown. A section of the farmers, however, interpreted this move of pandemic governance too convenient. Ultimately, the social distancing mandates came to be seen as the state's resistance to disband the farmers which in turn consolidated the protests. The farmers camped at the borders, settled in and built a home on the highways blocking inter-state mobility until the government finally repealed the farm laws after a year.
The Supreme Court of India stayed the implementation of the farm laws in January 2021. Farmer leaders welcomed the stay order, which remained in effect until they were eventually repealed. A Supreme Court-appointed committee submitted its confidential report before the court on 19 March 2021. Six state governments (Kerala, Punjab, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Delhi and West Bengal) passed resolutions against the farms acts, and three states (Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan) tabled counter-legislation in their respective state assemblies. None of the counter-legislations was signed into law by the respective state governors.
The protests were often criticized by the Indian government to be a foreign conspiracy. In a statement to Supreme Court, the government stated that the protests have been infiltrated by Khalistanis. On 26 January 2021, India's Republic Day, tens of thousands of the farmers held a farmer's parade with a large convoy of tractors and drove into Delhi. The protesters deviated from the pre-sanctioned routes permitted by the Delhi Police resulting in violence and clashes with the police. Later, protesters reached Red Fort and installed farmer union flags and Sikh religious flags on the mast on the rampart of the Red Fort. On 19 November 2021, the union government decided to repeal the bills, and both houses of Parliament passed the Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 on 29 November. Following the announcement of the repeal, farmer unions continued with the demand for guaranteed minimum support prices (MSPs), reminding the government of the aim of doubling farmers' income by 2022; and the 2004 M. S. Swaminathan–headed National Commission on Farmers reports. The Supreme Court appointed committee report was released by a committee member on 21 March 2022.
The 2020–2021 Indian farmers' protest was a protest against three farm acts passed by the Parliament of India in September 2020. The acts, often called the Farm Bills, had been described as "anti-farmer laws" by many farmer unions, and politicians from the opposition who said that the three laws would leave farmers at the "mercy of corporates" since the farmer-trader disputes were taken to SDM instead of judiciary. The protests demanded the creation of a minimum support price (MSP) bill, to ensure that corporates cannot control the prices. The Union Government, however, maintained that the laws would make it effortless for farmers to sell their produce directly to big buyers, and stated that the protests are based on misinformation. Related endemic legacy issues include farmer suicides and low farmer incomes. Despite India being largely self-sufficient in foodgrain production and having welfare schemes, hunger and nutrition remain serious issues, with India ranking as one of the worst countries in the world in food security parameters. Due to unfulfilled previous demands 2024 Indian farmers' protest started on 13 of February 2024.
Soon after the acts were introduced, unions began holding local protests, mostly in Punjab state. After two months of protests, farmer unions—mainly from Punjab and neighbouring Haryana—began a movement named Dilli Chalo (transl. Let's go to Delhi), in which tens of thousands of union members marched towards the nation's capital. The Indian government ordered the police and law enforcement of various states to stop the protesters using water cannons, batons, and tear gas to prevent them entering Haryana and then Delhi. November 2020 saw a nationwide general strike in support of the farmers and thousands converging at various border points on the way to Delhi. Eleven rounds of talks took place between the central government and farmers represented by the farm unions between 14 October 2020 and 22 January 2021; all were inconclusive with agreement on only two relatively minor points. Smaller but richer states of Haryana and Punjab, with large surplus food production, are the massive provider of food security to India as they provide 70-90% of wheat and 28-44% of rice of India's total PDS. Hence, farm reform was considered to be a more sensitive issue in these food surplus states as compared to other net food consumer states with negative food security such as BIMARU states.
While a section of farmer unions was protesting, the Indian government claimed that some unions had come out in support of the farm laws. By mid-December 2020, the Supreme Court of India had received a batch of petitions asking for the removal of blockades created by the protesters around Delhi. Farmers said that they will not listen to the courts if told to back off, and that staying the implementation of the farm laws was not a solution. This was also the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, in light of which the central government had put in place a nation-wide lockdown. A section of the farmers, however, interpreted this move of pandemic governance too convenient. Ultimately, the social distancing mandates came to be seen as the state's resistance to disband the farmers which in turn consolidated the protests. The farmers camped at the borders, settled in and built a home on the highways blocking inter-state mobility until the government finally repealed the farm laws after a year.
The Supreme Court of India stayed the implementation of the farm laws in January 2021. Farmer leaders welcomed the stay order, which remained in effect until they were eventually repealed. A Supreme Court-appointed committee submitted its confidential report before the court on 19 March 2021. Six state governments (Kerala, Punjab, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Delhi and West Bengal) passed resolutions against the farms acts, and three states (Punjab, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan) tabled counter-legislation in their respective state assemblies. None of the counter-legislations was signed into law by the respective state governors.
The protests were often criticized by the Indian government to be a foreign conspiracy. In a statement to Supreme Court, the government stated that the protests have been infiltrated by Khalistanis. On 26 January 2021, India's Republic Day, tens of thousands of the farmers held a farmer's parade with a large convoy of tractors and drove into Delhi. The protesters deviated from the pre-sanctioned routes permitted by the Delhi Police resulting in violence and clashes with the police. Later, protesters reached Red Fort and installed farmer union flags and Sikh religious flags on the mast on the rampart of the Red Fort. On 19 November 2021, the union government decided to repeal the bills, and both houses of Parliament passed the Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 on 29 November. Following the announcement of the repeal, farmer unions continued with the demand for guaranteed minimum support prices (MSPs), reminding the government of the aim of doubling farmers' income by 2022; and the 2004 M. S. Swaminathan–headed National Commission on Farmers reports. The Supreme Court appointed committee report was released by a committee member on 21 March 2022.
Background
India is self-sufficient in the production of food such as food grains including wheat and rice; and other categories such as fruits, vegetables, milk and meat among others. Yet, despite this, nutrition and hunger remain a serious challenge in the country. In 2021, India ranked 101 out of 116 countries in the Global Hunger Index. According to the United Nations, India bears 1/4th of the entire world's hunger burden. This is despite India having overarching food ration and welfare schemes.
The Agriculture Census in India, last held in 2014, identified that farmers in India have small land holdings, one of the reasons they are not able to meet their needs. Two-thirds of the land holdings in the country are less than one hectare. Part-time farming in the country is not common. Other related issues include farmer suicides and the state of the economy in India. India reported a total 296,438 Indian farmers suicides between 1995 and 2015. In 2019, 10,281 people who work in the farming sector committed suicide, that is 28 people a day. The slower growth of Punjab's economy, particularly its agricultural sector, is believed to have helped fuel the protest. This includes issues arising from its paddy-wheat monoculture and warnings of desertification.
Second green revolution
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, during an interview in 2004, said,
We need a second green revolution, making use of modern advances [...] For that we need to revitalize India's research agricultural system, India's extension system, India's credit system. The more we commercialize our agriculture, the more our farmers need access to commercial inputs and that was a modernization of our agriculture credit system. [...] There are other rigidities because of the whole marketing regimes set up in the 1930s which prevent our farmers from selling their produce where they get the highest rate of return. It is our intention to remove all those handicaps which come in the way of India realizing its vast potential as one large common market.
On 8 February 2021, in the Rajya Sabha, Prime Minister Modi referenced this interview of Manmohan Singh and said, "Manmohan Singh talked about it but Modi is having to do it now. Be proud". Prime Minister Modi has referred to the second agricultural revolution in 2015, 2016, and 2017.
Three agriculture laws
In 2017, the central government released the Model Farming Acts. However, after a certain period of time, it was found that a number of the reforms suggested in the acts had not been implemented by the states. A committee consisting of seven Chief Ministers was set up in July 2019 to discuss the implementation. Accordingly, the central Government of India promulgated three ordinances (or temporary laws) in the first week of June 2020, which dealt with agricultural produce, their sale, hoarding, agricultural marketing and contract farming reforms among other things. These ordinances were introduced as bills and passed by the Lok Sabha on 15 and 18 September 2020. Later, on 20 and 22 September, the three bills were passed by the Rajya Sabha, where the government is in a minority, via a voice vote – ignoring the requests of the opposition for a full vote. The President of India gave his assent by signing the bills on 28 September, thus converting them into acts. The legality of the acts has been questioned; "agriculture" is mentioned in the state list six times, the union list four times, and the concurrent list two times.
These acts areas are:
Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act: expands the scope of trade areas of farmers produce from select areas to "any place of production, collection, and aggregation." Allows electronic trading and e-commerce of scheduled farmers' produce. Prohibits state governments from levying any market fee, cess or levy on farmers, traders, and electronic trading platforms for a trade of farmers' produce conducted in an 'outside trade area'.
Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act: allows for the center to regulate certain food items in the course of extraordinary situations like war or famine. Requires that imposition of any stock limit on agricultural produce be based on price rise.
International precedents
Many developing economies reformed their agriculture policies in the 1980s and 1990s to encourage private sector participation. Swati Dhingra of the London School of Economics cites the case of Kenya in which their agriculture reforms increased the ease of doing business, however this very increase caused other problems for the farmers. In February 2021, 87 farmers' unions in the United States wrote a solidarity letter, giving the example of Reagan era farm policies – "Reagan era furthered the farm crisis through deliberate federal policy changes, with systematic erosion of parity prices and other deregulatory efforts."
Farmer unions' demands
Immediate demand
Repeal the farm laws
The farmer unions believe that the laws will open the sale and marketing of agricultural products outside the notified Agricultural Produce Market Committee APMC) mandis for farmers. Further, the laws will allow inter-state trade and encourage hike electronic trading of agricultural produce. The new laws prevent the state governments from collecting a market fee, cess, or levy for trade outside the APMC markets; this has led the farmers to believe the laws will "gradually lead to the deterioration and ultimately end the mandi system" thus "leaving farmers at the mercy of corporates". Further, the farmers believe that the laws will end their existing relationship with agricultural small-scale businessmen (commission agents who act as middlemen by providing financial loans, ensuring timely procurement, and promising adequate prices for their crop). Opponents of the acts further contend that the legislation would expand control over agricultural markets at the expense of small-scale farmers. These arguments build on broader, ongoing debates regarding the corporatisation of Indian agriculture and the influence of international agribusiness.
Later demands
Additionally, protesting farmers believe dismantling the APMC mandis will encourage abolishing the purchase of their crops at the Minimum Support Price (MSP). They are therefore demanding the minimum support prices to be guaranteed by the government in writing. Other demands added over time have included-
Convene a special Parliament session to repeal the farm laws
Make MSP and state procurement of crops a legal right
Assurances that conventional procurement system will remain
Implement Swaminathan Panel Report and peg MSP at least 50% more than weighted average cost of production
Cut diesel prices for agricultural use by 50%
Repeal of Commission on Air Quality Management in NCR and the adjoining Ordinance 2020 and removal of punishment and fine for stubble burning
Release of farmers arrested for burning paddy and wheat stubble in Punjab
Abolishing the Electricity Ordinance 2020
Centre should not interfere in state subjects, decentralization in practice
Withdrawal of all cases against and release of farmer leaders
Farmers have been insistent over repealing the farm laws. Even after the government offered to stay the farm laws for 18 months on 21 January 2021, the farmers refused the stay and pushed for repeal. Other than the farm unions and leaders, people such as Markandey Katju and Thol. Thirumavalavan have also made statements in relation to staying the farm laws.
Minimum support price (MSP)
Following the Prime Minister's announcement of the repeal of the farm laws in November 2021, there were renewed demands for a guaranteed MSP. This had been the second major demand throughout the farmers' protest. This came amid reminders of the government's target of doubling farmers' incomes by 2022; in 2016 the finance minister had stated "we need to think beyond food security and give back to our farmers a sense of income security". Relevant recommendations by the MS Swaminathan headed National Commission on Farmers have been cited as a reminder.
Transport bodies such as the All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC) have extended support.
Protests and incidents
2020
In Punjab, small-scale protests had started in August 2020 when the Farm Bills were made public. It was only after the passage of the acts that more farmers and farm unions across India joined the protests against the reforms. On 25 September 2020 farm unions all over India called for a Bharat Bandh (lit. transl. nation-wide shutting down) to protest against these farm laws. The most widespread protests took place in Punjab, Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh but demonstrations were also reported in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Kerala and other states. Railway services remained suspended in Punjab for more than two months due to the protests, starting from October. Following this, farmers from different states then marched to Delhi to protest against the laws. Farmers also criticized the national media for misrepresenting the protest. From 12 December, farmer unions took over highway toll plazas in Haryana and allowed free movement of vehicles. In certain parts of India, bullock-cart rallies in support of farmer's protest have also been organized by marginal farmers. Transport bodies such as the All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), representing about 9.5 million truckers and 5 million bus and taxi drivers, have threatened to halt the movement of supplies in the northern states, and if the government fails to address the farmer's issues, it would be done nationwide.
Rail Roko and Dilli Chalo
On 24 September 2020, farmers started a "Rail roko" (transl. "stop the trains") campaign, following which train services to and from Punjab were affected. Farmers extended the campaign into October. On 23 October, some farmer unions decided to call off the campaign, as supplies of fertilizer and other goods in the state were starting to run short.
After failing to get the support of their respective state governments, the farmers decided to pressure the Central Government by marching to Delhi. On 25 November, protesters from the Dilli Chalo (transl. "let us go to Delhi") campaign were met by the police at the borders of the city. The police employed the use of tear gas and water cannons, dug up roads, and used layers of barricades and sand barriers to stop the protesters, leading to at least three farmer casualties. Amidst the clashes, on 27 November, media highlighted the actions of a youth who jumped onto a police water cannon targeting protesting farmers and turned it off. He was later charged with attempted murder.