New Delhi: Women in more than 300 districts on January 18 asserted their rights as Indian farmers on Mahila Kisan Diwas.

All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination Committee (AIKSCC) that organized the program highlighted that 75 percent of all agricultural work is done by women and that the three controversial farm laws will ruin their livelihood and survival.

Farmer leaders said that women are engaged in almost all forms of farming work such as sowing, transplanting, irrigation, weeding, harvesting, transporting, sorting, and packing. They also deal with rearing, provision of fodder, grazing, milking, cleaning, manufacture of dung cakes, and processing of milk.

Women farmers submitted a memorandum addressed to the Indian president demanding increase in MNREGA work and wages and an end to corruption. They also demanded land rights and pattas, Minimum Support Prices (MSP) of all crops, cheap loans and loan waiver for all farmers, transportation facilities, provision of equipment for food processing and sale of processed/semi processed foods in the market. Lastly they asked for pension and other social rights and protections.

“They demanded their share in the development of India, which is being handed over to the corporate and MNCs and said the new laws will be opposed till they are withdrawn,” an AIKSCC statement said.

Regarding the laws, women leaders said that the three Acts will jeopardize the Public Distribution System (PDS) and food security adversely affecting women.

“Women farmers are already in deep crisis due to implementation of enhanced electricity rates, inflated electricity bills and rising corruption. To correct them and [the] withdrawal of the Electricity Bill 2020 is becoming more and more popular all over India,” they said.

Women at the Singhu border with Delhi voiced their dissent against the three agriculture laws forcibly passed by the federal government – the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, the Farmer’s Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act.

Similarly, thousands of women from Maharashtra and Gujarat celebrated Mahila Kisan Diwas at the Shahjahanpur farmer protest site, said the Sayukta Kisan Morcha.

Women took charge of the event at the Shahjahanpur-Kheda border along the Jaipur-Delhi Highway with cultural programs, street plays and speeches by women leaders. Moreover, women farmers in the vicinity also took out tractor marches to participate in the event.

“This movement will also be remembered for the pioneering contribution of women in the coming times,” said a Morcha press release.

Women also participated in the gradual fasting for 24-hours. As many as 11 women farmers namely participated in the event.

Farmers from Maharashtra and Gujarat also participated in the day’s events as a response to the Supreme Court’s remarks on women’s participation in the farmers’ protest.

Women leaders took center stage with leaders such as Pratibha Shinde, Chandrakala, Nisha, Rajbala and Varsha Deshpande making speeches about women’s role in the protest. Similarly, other speaker such as Rukmini, Varsha Chopra, Sumitra Chopra, Kavita Srivastava, Sunita Chaturvedi, Pratibha Shinde, Raija Bai and Manju Yadav also spoke and resolved to further increase the participation of women in the movement.

Source: sabrangindia.in