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A day after Samyukta Kisan Morcha rejected the Centre's proposal to put new farm laws on hold for about 18 months, the government told farmer unions during the eleventh round of talks on Friday that they can come it "if they have a better proposal".
"We gave a proposal to farmers and if they have a better proposal then they can come to us," the government is learnt to have told the farmers during the meeting. Surjeet Singh Phul, state president of BKU Krantikari (Punjab) said after the meeting that no date has been fixed for the next round of talks. Rakesh Tikait, Spokesperson, Bhartiya Kisan Union, said the government offered to put the implementation of the farm laws on hold for two years and said that the next round of meeting can take place only if farmer unions are ready to accept the proposal. The protesting farmer unions had on Thursday rejected the proposal to put new farm laws on hold for about 18 months and insisted on their demand for the repeal of the three laws. A press release issued by Samyukta Kisan Morcha after a full general body meeting on Thursday said that "the proposal put forth by the Government yesterday was rejected". The protesting farmer unions and the government-held the 10th round of talks on Wednesday. Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar had said after the talks that the government had proposed that implementation of farm laws should be kept on hold for a period of one to one-and-a-half years. He had said that representatives of farmers' unions and the government can discuss all issues related to the farmers' agitation during the period so that an appropriate solution can be found. Farmers have been protesting on the different borders of the national capital since November 26 against the three newly enacted farm laws - Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020. (ANI)
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