Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 9: Jammu & Kashmir Kisan Tehrik (JKKT) and trade unions affiliated with Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), J&K today held a protest at Exhibition Ground in support of their demands.
On the joint call of Centre of India Trade Union (CITU) and All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) for Jail Bharo Andolan, the hundreds of farmers and workers drawn from various parts of Jammu region assembled this morning here at Exhibition Ground and held a protest demonstration in support of their demands like complete farm loan waiver, loan at minimum 4% interest, implementation of recommendations of MS Swaminathan Report, etc.
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Raising slogans, the protesting farmers and workers demanded legal provision guarantying minimum support price, provision of pension to farmers and agricultural laborers upto Rs 5000 per month, Rs 18000 minimum wages for all workers, contain price rise, against pro- employer labour reforms and disinvestment of PSU and ending of contract system.
While addressing the farmers and workers, GN Malik, general secretary, JKKT, said that there is rise of 42% in the number of farmers’ suicide during 2014-15, one in every 30 minutes, and the large number of hunger deaths in different parts of the country has been reported but instead of implementing its poll promise of minimum support price as per Swaminathan Committee recommendations, the BJP Government met farmers’ demands of MSP and loan waiver with bullets and killing as it was witnessed in Mandsaur in Madhya Pradesh.
He further said that at the same time, bad loans of willful corporate defaulters amounting to more than Rs 1.91 lakh crore were written off during three financial year of Modi regime, FDI and corporatization of agriculture through contract forming are being pursued with insurance companies profiteering in the name of crop insurance. Moreover, large scale displacement and dispossessing of rural poor is taking place through forcible land acquisition without proper rehabilitation and resettlement.
Om Parkash, general secretary, State CITU and Sham Parsad Kesar, senior leader of CITU, also spoke on the occasion.
Later, the protesting workers and farmers tried to take out a rally but they were stopped by the police at Dogra Chowk, where score of leaders gave their court arrest. They were later released by the police.
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