India is set for a Bharat Bandh on Monday. The bandh called by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha is backed at the political level by the Opposition parties and participated also by the unions in the banking and several other sectors as an expression of solidarity. Public life would be disturbed. The bandh spans all government and private entities across the board and seeks closure of not just shops, offices, transport and industries but educational institutions too. It marks the day that completes a year of introduction of the three farm sector reforms and also the completion of 10 months of farmers’ protests that were mostly confined to Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, and which the Modi government watched with no noticeable disquiet.
Farmers have been getting a raw deal for decades and most of them are caught in debt traps also because of seasonal crop failures for which there has been no massive or meaningful insurance scheme as yet. The farm reform laws, the government side has argued, is a panacea for all the ills plaguing the agriculture sector that contributes 20 percent of the GDP – the highest among all sectors. Yet, the debt burden of farmers, who form about half of the Indian population, keeps increasing. Banking unions say the plight of farmers is worsening; and that the average outstanding loan per agricultural household has increased to Rs 74,121 in 2018 from Rs 47,000 in 2013, a proof of farm sector distress.
The Covid pandemic season was a parched phase for the Opposition parties, mainly the Communists, to march people to the streets and engage in agitations. The Congress, on its own, often exercises restraint. Yet, with the relaxations being effected in relation to pandemic curbs, more such activism can be expected in the coming months. Curiously, bandhs and nationwide labour strikes are called by leftists close to the weekends, as is the case now too, so that the employees across the board could, as a bonus, “enjoy” an additional day of holiday alongside the week-end rest. Point to note is, are these protests serving any purpose. If they do, well and good. Else, one can only curse the fate of India. In the present context, neither the bank employees nor students should have been a party to an agitation linked to the farm sector. Bank employees are a well-fed lot; they are fancying more strikes at the drop of a hat. Students have already suffered hugely in the Covid season. Irresponsible styles of protests do not help the nation.
