The farmers' protest march is set to resume amid strict security at Delhi's borders

Thousands of Indian farmers will march to Delhi to demand minimum crop prices.

After a young farmer passed away during the protest, the farmers decided to call off their strike at the end of February.

Delhi's borders are closely guarded, and police have been called to stop the march.

Though national elections in India are only a few months away, the farmers' demonstrations have resumed.

Because farmers make up a sizable portion of the electorate, observers believe that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's federal government would like to avoid upsetting them this close to the election.

When the farmers' demonstrations started again in early February, the government talked with unions to prevent farmers from marching to Delhi from the bordering states of Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh.

At least three times, negotiations with the administration failed because the parties could not agree on what they wanted.

In addition to guaranteed prices, the farmers have urged the government to forgive their debts and provide pensions for older people.

According to the demonstrators, the government ought to increase the number of workdays under the rural job guarantee programme from 100 to 200. In addition, the farmers demand that India renounce all free trade agreements and leave the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

On Wednesday, farmers from all over the nation will attempt to assemble in Delhi using buses and metros in response to a summons made by two farmers' unions. The farmers have also demanded that trains be suspended for four hours on March 10th, or "rail roko."

Why farmers in India are demonstrating once again

The demands made by the demonstrators are a spin-off of the farmers' demonstrations that swept Delhi in 2020. At the time, three new farm legislation that relaxed regulations on the pricing, storage, and selling of agricultural produce were being demanded by the farmers from the government.

According to farm unions, the planned regulations could damage them by creating opportunities for large corporations to engage in free trade. In November 2021, following several months of opposition, the federal government decided not to proceed with the planned regulations.

Although farmers viewed this as a significant win, they had only ended the walkout after the government made other commitments, such as forming a committee to investigate the establishment of a minimum support price for all crops.

Farmers now claim that the government has abandoned its extra commitments in 2021.

In February, the protests turned violent as police used tear gas to scatter the demonstrators, resulting in the death of a farmer aged 22 near the Punjab border. Punjabi state authorities stated that a gunshot wound to the head caused the young man's death. His family had demanded action against the police officers who they claimed had fired at the demonstrators, but they had refused to bury his body.

To honour the man who had passed away, the farmers' unions halted their demonstrations until the end of February. Sunday's funeral prayers marked when the demonstrators said they would resume their march towards Delhi.