UPDATE 2-India’s Punjab warns farm protesters against telecom mast attacks
By Rupam Jain and Abhirup Roy. NEW DELHI/ MUMBAI, Dec 28- India’s major grain-growing state of Punjab on Monday asked police to crack down on farmers and sympathisers vandalising telecommunication masts as they intensify their weeks-long protests against farm deregulation. Tens of thousands of farmers are camping out on highways near New Delhi demanding a…
By Rupam Jain and Abhirup Roy
NEW DELHI/MUMBAI, Dec 28 (Reuters) – India’s majorgrain-growing state of Punjab on Monday asked police to crackdown on farmers and sympathisers vandalising telecommunicationmasts as they intensify their weeks-long protests against farmderegulation.
Protesters have attacked hundreds of masts of companies suchas oil-to-groceries conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltdthat they believe have profited from the farm reformsat their expense.
Tens of thousands of farmers are camping out on highwaysnear New Delhi demanding a repeal of the new laws they fear willlead to corporate dominance of the farm sector and erode theirincomes.
The office of Punjab’s chief minister said in a statementthat more than 1,500 communication masts had been damaged ortheir power supply cut off in the past few days.
The “use of violence could alienate the protesters from themasses, which would be detrimental to the interests of thefarming community”, minister Amarinder Singh said in thestatement.
A source close to Reliance’s telecom unit, Jio, said thatmore than 1,400 of its 9,000-plus masts there had been hit, withpower supply and fibre cut by unidentified people.
Some bundles of Jio’s fibre were burnt at one location, thesource said, seeking anonymity. Jio did not respond to a requestfor a comment.
Representatives of two of the more than two dozen farmerunions protesting against the laws rejected the allegations whencontacted by Reuters. They asked to remain unidentified pendinga formal statement from all of the unions.
The federal government says the laws will increase farmers’income as it links potential bulk buyers such as Reliance,WalMart Inc and Adani Enterprises Ltd directlywith farmers, bypassing wholesale markets and commission agents.
The government and farmers are scheduled to hold anotherround of talks this week.(Reporting by Rupam Jain and Abhirup Roy; Editing by ChristianSchmollinger and Nick Macfie)