At least 670 farmers linked to the protests have lost their lives during one-year-long agitation against the Union government’s three farm laws.
According to a blog, Human Cost of Farmers Protest, the toll at the farmers’ protest stands at 670 on 19 November 2021, a day Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the repeal of the three contentious farm laws against which farmers, mainly from Punjab and Haryana, have been protesting at the borders of Delhi for nearly a year.
This data has been collected from November 26, 2020, to 19 November this year.
“This blog is created with the sole purpose of recording the deaths of all the farmers or supporters of Famers’ Protest 2020-2021 happening currently at the borders of Delhi, India. This is to remind everyone of the human cost of the protest lest one forgets what this fight is against. This is also to commemorate the participation of these martyrs towards a cause that is bigger than just farmers’ rights and is emerging as a movement for the rights of the entire humanity,” read a note published in the blog.
The blog consists of all the details of 670 deceased farmers.
Most of the deaths happened due to heart attack, illness due to cold weather conditions, and accidents.
The majority of them were sitting at Delhi borders while some others died in accidents while going to or coming back from the protest sites.
The historic protest also witnessed a huge amount of farmer suicides.
According to the data, farmers of every age group — from 18 years to 85 years — have died.
Farmers from neighbouring states of Delhi have been protesting the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act 2020.
PM chose the occasion of Guru Nanak Jayanti to announce the repeal of the three laws.
Addressing the nation, Modi said, “Today, while apologising to the countrymen.”
He promised to take back the laws in the next parliamentary session after completing the constitutional process.
Two weeks from today, November 26, would have marked a year of farmers besieging Delhi demanding to strike down the three laws.
The decision right before elections in Uttar Pradesh and other four states where Modi’s BJP is facing backlash due to the ongoing agitation by farmers. Four farmers were killed in Lakhimpur Kheri on October 3 after a vehicle that was part of Union minister Ajay Mishra’s convoy ran over protesting farmers.
Farmers’ protest in the borders of Delhi was, at times, lauded as the largest protest gathering in human history.
The Samyukta Kisan Morcha, an umbrella body of protesting farmers, while welcoming the repeal of the three contentious farm laws, reminded Prime Minister Narendra Modi that their protests were not limited to this one issue.
“Samyukt Kisan Morcha welcomes this decision and will wait for the announcement to take effect through due parliamentary procedures,” an umbrella body of 40 farm unions, said.
“SKM also reminds the Prime Minister that the agitation of farmers is not just for the repeal of the three black laws, but also for a statutory guarantee of remunerative prices for all agricultural produce and for all farmers. This important demand of farmers is still pending. So also is the withdrawal of the Electricity Amendment Bill. SKM will take note of all developments, hold its meeting soon and announce further decisions,” the farmers’ body said in a statement.
The country’s ‘annadatas’ have made “arrogance bow its head” through ’satyagraha’, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Friday and described the Union’s decision to repeal the farm laws as a “victory against injustice”.
