New Delhi, December 23: India, swiftly transitioning away from being an agriculture-centric economy, is frequently subjected to agitations by farmer groups. From dwindling minimum support price (MSP) to seeking farm loan-waivers, agrarian outfits often hit the streets - sometimes barging into the "urban India" to draw attention of the bourgeoisie. On Kisan Diwas, it is noteworthy to recall the five major agrarian protests in 2019.

In Maharashtra, agrarian groups under the aegis of All India Kisan Sabha - the farmers' body linked to the Communist Party of India (Marxist) - staged their second "Kisan Long March" between Nashik to Mumbai in the third week of February this year. The 180-km farmers' march was aimed at reminding the then Devendra Fadnavis government of the "promises" which had made to the protesting farmers a year ago. Kisan Diwas 2019 Date: History and Significance of Kisan Divas or National Farmers Day in India.

Farmers of Punjab, under the leadership of Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, staged a massive rail roko protest on the Delhi-Amritsar route in first week of March. Their demonstration had forced the Indian Railways to cancel 38 trains and reschedule 85 others. The farmers had demanded a complete loan-waiver, barring of banks from seizing and auctioning their lands for non-payment, along with a 15 percent interest on their payment dues for sugarcane crops.

In Karnataka, farmers of Bengaluru and Mysore regions protested throughout the month of July seeking the release of water from Cauvery and Hemanti rivers for irrigation purpose. The then Chief Minister, HD Kumaraswamy, had expressed inability to address their plight, stating that the onus to settle the Cauvery water-sharing dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu lies with the Centre.

In North Gujarat, farmer bodies cutting across party and ideological lines came together in November this year to protest against PepsiCo -- the multinational entity which sells the highly popular Lays Chips in India -- after it slapped a Rs 1.05 crore suit against four farmers for sowing a variety of potato which it had "trademarked".

Sugarcane farmers of western Uttar Pradesh brought their protests to the borders of Delhi, the national capital, on September 21. The demonstrators threatened to barge into the city and disrupt flow of traffic if their demands were not met. After intervention by the state and central governments, the protest was called off. An assurance was made to them, including a mechanism to timely disburse the dues for sugarcane farmers along with a rejig in MSP rates in accordance with the MS Swaminathan Commission report.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 23, 2019 10:43 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).