Farmers' strike: Unions in Rajasthan call for shutdown across 45,000 villages in state on 9 July

Jaipur: Nearly 26 farmers’ associations have called for a shutdown in 45,000 villages across Rajasthan on 9 July to press for their demands, even after the RSS-backed Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) called off its proposed stir. [caption id="" align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of farmers’ protests. PTI[/caption] Farmers in these villages have decided to curtail the supply of milk, vegetables and grains, and will wear black bands to show solidarity and fight for their demands. The farmers’ bodies have been demanding to waive agriculture loans, the passage of a farmers’ Security Act and implementation of the recommendations of the MS Swaminathan Commission. “Farmers in Rajasthan are no different from farmers of other states,” the national president of Kisan Mahapanchayat, Rampal Jat, said in a press conference in Jaipur. “Farmers’ demands have not been met. Holding talks with BKS representatives and assurances given to them was merely an eyewash and attempt to pacify farmers’ protest. “We have called for a shutdown in 45,000 villages in Rajasthan on 9 July. Twenty-six associations representing farmers will support the protest,” Jat said. He has alleged that the BJP, which is in power at the Centre and in the state, has failed to fulfil the promises made to the farmers in its election manifestos. Farmers in Rajasthan are under huge debt as their produce is not being procured at the government-fixed minimum support price (MSP). Several states including Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab have waived farmers’ loans.