Canton Township residents joined an international demonstration protesting new laws imposed by the Indian government restricting the rights of farmers.
The gathering in Canton last Saturday attracted hundreds of Sikh and Indian residents many brandishing signs announcing their support for the Indian farmers whom, they claim, are being threatened by the new Indian laws which strip away the rights of farmers and which will devastate farming in that country.
The protest in Canton seemed appropriate with the history of farming in the township which was, decades ago, the largest farming community in Wayne County. The Canton protest took place at Heritage Park organized by Plymouth resident Jas Sidhu, who said he was a farmer before emigrating to the U.S. and is a descendant of Indian farmers. He said the new laws are a systematic repression of human rights in India and that the new laws will destroy all farming in the country.
Demonstrations took place in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia as well as throughout the U.S. in support of the farmers. The new agricultural regulations deregulate crop pricing in the country, which critics and farmers claim will decimate their industry and eradicate their already meager profits. The farmers claim that the government will stop buying their grain at guaranteed prices which will lead control of pricing by corporations. The government, however, contents the new laws open the farming industry to the open market and private investment.
Among the protesters was Armrinder Grewal who said that his parents and grandparents were farmers in India. He said that the Indian government has targeted protesters in that country with tear gas and water cannons. A 5-year resident of Canton, he said he fears the Indian government will use more serious and violent action to quell the protests.
Anmol Gill, 17, and a senior at Canton High School, also attended the demonstration along with her cousins. She said she supports the protests of the Indian farmers. One of the main complaints of the Indian farmers is the failure of the government to discuss the abrupt changes in the law with them. They claim that the new laws that govern farming should have been discussed with farmers who should have had some input into legislation that could potentially destroy their ability to sell and market their crops.
Currently, farming provides for nearly 60 percent of Indian citizens' incomes.
