Union ministers meet farmers' groups for talk

Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) supporters in Salem stage a protest in solidarity with farmers and against the Centreu00c3u00a2u00c2u0080u00c2u0099s farm laws, on Saturday. Pic/PTI

Farmers' groups met three Union ministers on Saturday for the fifth round of talks amid the ongoing protests over the Centre's new farm laws.

Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, Railways, Commerce and Food Minister Piyush Goyal and Minister of State for Commerce Som Parkash, who is an MP from Punjab, held talks with the representatives of 40 farmers' unions at the Vigyan Bhawan in the national capital.

Talks between the Union ministers and a representative group of thousands of agitating farmers failed to yield any resolution on Thursday, as the union leaders stuck to their demand for the repeal of the three laws.

Meanwhile, only repealing of the new farm laws will end the stalemate, an All India Kisan Sabha official said on Saturday. "There is no doubt in our minds that only repeal of the laws will end the agitation. We will not budge. We want the government to take their proposals to the Parliament and let a Parliamentary committee discuss the issues. We will not agree to anything short of repeal of the laws," AIKS finance secretary Krishna Prasad said.

Undeterred by the winter chill, thousands of farmers have stayed put at various border points of Delhi for the past nine days as part of their protest against the Centre's farm laws.

Senior Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Saturday said the BJP-led government at the centre only understands the language of street protest. "When Congress opposed bills that are anti-farmer, the ruling party accused us of undermining the interest of farmers. Now the same government has been forced to bow down and concede to demands of the farmers in a very reluctant manner."

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