Agricultural strike in India is adding to fears and concerns of families in Leamington and Warwick

Sweeping new agricultural laws which small farmers say put their livelihoods at risk have led to one of the biggest strikes in history.

Thousands of farmers have headed south to the capital New Delhi and peacefully blocked roads for weeks.

The weather is freezing and around one protestor a day is dying of cold.

But the strike goes on and families here in the UK are desperately worried about what will happen to nephews, nieces and cousins.

Leamington resident, and founder of Leamington Community Boxing, Babs Kandola has relatives who are taking part in the strikes.

He said:“I’m so worried for them.

"I’ve told them to go home, but they won’t.

"People are fearful that these new laws mean that their livelihoods and their freedom are at stake – that they’ll end up going into debt to big corporations who will control the market and bleed them dry.

"And I know I’m not the only one – there are hundreds of families in Leamington feeling the same.”

Many of the affected families are in areas represented by Green Party councillors. The Warwick District Green party has said: "“On top of the pandemic struggles we all face, hundreds of families in our community in Warwick & Leamington face yet another layer of anxiety in their lives.

"The new agricultural laws and the resulting farmer’s strike mean the situation in the Punjab, New Delhi and beyond is very difficult and no-one knows what will happen next.

"Many who live in Warwick District are desperately worried about the fate of their nephews, nieces and cousins.

"We want to recognise the extra pain and fear that our neighbours feel for their families caught up in this situation.

"We stand with you at this uncertain time.

"What’s happening in India right now reminds us of the miner’s strike in the UK in the 1980s.

"A government saying that an industry has to ‘liberalise and deregulate’, but doing it in a way that people fear will hollow out communities and strips away people’s control of their lives.

"It was coal in the 1980s in the UK, now it’s agriculture in India where two thirds of the population is engaged in agriculture.

"There is general agreement in India that the way farm products are sold in India needs to change, but these changes are being imposed on people, without proper consultation, placing the biggest risks on the poorest farmers, who are least able to cope.

"Small farmers from the Punjab and across India are Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims; they are overwhelmingly making their case directly, but peacefully.

"We respect them for this peaceful approach and hope that the Indian government listens to the farmers’ concerns and an amicable resolution is found.

"We always want to stand alongside those with the least power and recognise that because of Warwick District’s links with the Punjab many of our residents are very worried and we have a responsibility to shine a light on this very difficult situation.”