Indian PM Narendra Modi revokes controversial farm laws

New Delhi: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday announced to revoke three controversial farm laws against which farmers have protested for more than a year.

According to details, PM Modi said that he would repeal the three farm laws that have led to massive protests in the northern parts of the country for a year. He urged farmers to return to their normal lives.

In an address to the nation, Modi said, “Today I have come to tell you, the whole country, that we have decided to withdraw all three agricultural laws.”

The Indian premier further assured that the constitutional process to repeal these three agricultural laws will be completed in the parliament session starting later this month.

Farmers in the northern part of the country have been protesting against these three laws for over a year. The announcement came on the day of Guru Nanak Jayanti, a celebration of the birthday of the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak.

The legislation was introduced in September last year that deregulates the sector, allowing farmers to sell produce to buyers beyond government-regulated wholesale markets, where growers are assured of a minimum price.

Small farmers came up with a stance that the changes make them vulnerable to competition from big business, and that they could eventually lose price support for staples such as wheat and rice.

The government says reform of the sector, which accounts for about 15% of the $2.7 trillion economy, means new opportunities and better prices for farmers.

The laws were to empower small farmers, but the government failed to convince some farmers who have been opposing the new laws, Modi concluded.