India farmers march four days to protest | The Guardian

At least 35,000 farmers have converged on India’s financial capital Mumbai to protest what they term the government’s failure to help them out of deep distress.

The demands of the farmers, who walked for four days from Nashik district in Maharashtra to state capital Mumbai, include the waiver of loans, a government-supported minimum price for crops and ownership rights for forest land they have tilled for decades.

Parts of Maharashtra faced severe drought and and water crisis for years followed by unseasonal rains that destroyed crops. More than 2400 farmers committed suicide in 2017, according to media reports citing state government figures.

Mumbai’s Azad Maidan grounds, where the farmers gathered at midnight to avoid disrupting the city’s busy morning traffic, was a sea of red flags on Monday.

The demonstration was coordinated by the All India Kisan Sabha affiliated to the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M).

A group of 40 farmer leaders were holding talks with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and other officials to work out a solution, NDTV news channel reported.

Source: India farmers march four days to protest | The Guardian