The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) on Friday announced plans to intensify protest against the contentious farm laws on the occasion of Holi.
The SKM met different mass organisations to strategise for their 'Sampurna Bharat Bandh' on March 26.
Shops to remain shut
Addressing a press conference, Ranjit Raju of Ganganagar Kisan Samiti said that during the nationwide strike on March 26, which also marks four months of the farmers' movement, all shops and other business establishments will remain shut for 12 hours.
Copies of a bill to be burned
On March 28, the protestors will burn copies of the three laws during 'holika dehan', he added.
"The strike will start from 6 in the morning and will continue till 6 in the evening, during which all shops and dairies and everything will remain closed. We will burn the copies of the three laws during Holi and hope that better sense prevails in the government, and it repeals the laws and gives us a written guarantee for MSP," Raju said.
According to farmer leaders, SKM's call for the bandh had found support in trade unions from organised and unorganised sectors, traders and Rashtriya associations, workers' unions, including agricultural workers unions, transporter associations, teachers' associations, youth and students associations.
"We are also trying to create such meetings at the state level so that the strike is observed everywhere," said another farmer leader Purushottam Sharma.
All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) leader Krishna Prasad said the fact that the movement had managed to continue for as long as 112 days was an achievement in itself, and it would only get stronger.
"The protest has been going on for 112 days. That itself is an achievement. Neither you, nor us had thought that we could do this, and the public has shown that it supports us," he said.
With PTI inputs
