Owner of a Gaushala would do nothing except buying a luxury car for himself. He will never feed or take care of cows— Thakur Bhanu Pratap Singh, National President, Bhartiya Kisan Union
Tazeem Haider | India Tomorrow
New Delhi, July 10— Farmers aligned with Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) gathered at Jantar Mantar near the Parliament House here on Tuesday to raise several demands including pension for farmers and formation of Kisan Commission having farmers only as members and office bearers.
Presiding over the protest gathering, Thakur Bhanu Pratap Singh, National President of Bhartiya Kisan Union, raised the issue of ‘Gaushalas’ or cow shelters in his speech, among others, and demanded that rearing of cows should be allowed instead of opening cow shelters.
“No cow will be slaughtered and no cow should be allowed to cause damage to the crops. Make farmers ‘Gau Mitr’ to rear cows and purchase cow dung at the rate Rs. 25 per kg. Allow unemployed people of all faiths to have cows. If you want the blessings of cows then purchase their waste and do not open ‘Gaushala’, because the owner of a Gaushala would do nothing except buying a luxury car for himself. He will never feed or take care of cows,” said Singh.
In his speech Singh further said, “It is the farmers who should decide the rate of the crops and not the government. For the last 72 years, the condition of farmers has become worst. We demand the Prime Minister to wave off all our loans. We demand Rs. 10,000 per month instead of Rs 3,000 as our pension as we are not beggars but annadata (or givers of food).”
“In case of an untimely death of a farmer during his agricultural work, for instance a snake bites him, the government should grant Rs 1 crore as compensation to his widow. We also demand that pakka toilets should replace kachcha toilets as they are poorly constructed by the authorities.
While raising the plight of policemen and armymen, Singh demanded, “In case a policeman dies on duty then the government should assist his family with Rs. 2 crore and in case of a soldier’s martyrdom while protecting the borders of the country, Rs 5 crore should be given to the family of the deceased”.
“We want the Prime Minister to sit and talk to us and we should feel satisfied that our demands will be met. But if we cannot get such assurances, then let me say that we won’t be responsible if the farmer of this country launches any movement. I will support it,” said Singh while asking everyone to raise their hands in compliance to what he said and the gathering did so.
India Tomorrow spoke to some farmers hailing from different parts of the country.
Savitri Vishkarma from Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, widow of a farmer, said, “I am a widow and have to support a big family. We have no pension and no agricultural income. I work as a maid cleaning utensils of people. I demand the government to wave off my electricity bill”.
Shukrani Devi Gupta from Kannauj, also in Uttar Pradesh, said, “My husband died eight years ago. I demand my pension, house and food. I don’t even have a hut to live in. We live like nomads. I have two sons. Both work as labourers to sustain as my husband died eight years ago. I filled numerous forms and approached authorities but no one listened to me.”
“The forest department has captured 12.5 beegha of our land. I want my land to be released and given back to me,” said Roopchand, a farmer.
