By IANS
Lucknow : Nearly 3,000 farmers Sunday formed a human chain on the main thoroughfare of Lucknow, demanding the reopening of grain and vegetable retail stores including those of Reliance Fresh that were closed following an order by the Uttar Pradesh government last month.
Farmers sought the revival of the Mayawati government’s earlier farm policy that aimed at boosting the agriculture sector by facilitating entry of corporate houses into direct procurement of agricultural produce from farmers through introduction of contract farming.
As they marched in a human chain stretching along the entire wall of the state assembly, they raised slogans, “Revive the farm policy” and “We want re-opening all retail stores”.
In a memorandum to the chief minister, the farmers belonging to a faction of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) praised Mayawati for bringing in a new policy.
“It was for the first time in the state that a policy was formulated to rid the farmers of continued exploitation by traders in mandis (wholesale markets).
“Entry of corporate houses in agriculture not only insured a remunerative price to the farmer for his produce but also a very reasonable price to the consumer at new retail stores set up by Reliance, Spencers and others,” the memorandum said.
The chief minister had justified her order to close down retail chains, saying farmers were opposed to the entry of retail giants and had held violent protests.
However, the memorandum noted: “It was the state’s misfortune that some undesirable people managed to convince the government that both farmers and common public were not in favour of the new policy.”
It called upon Mayawati “not to get misguided by such misnomers spread by unscrupulous elements and order revival of the discontinued policy together with reopening of the shut retail stores, so that the unabated exploitation of farmers by middle-men and unscrupulous traders could be brought to an end.”