Kanawani farmers' 35-day protest escalates as officials refuse dialogue

Farmers from Kanawani village continued their protest for the 35th consecutive day today, with their frustration mounting sharply over the complete absence of any dialogue with administrative and authority officials.

The protest, centered on a set of demands by the local farming community, has now stretched past a full month without any official from the administration or the authority visiting the protest site to hold talks with the farmers. This prolonged silence from the authorities has steadily fueled anger among the demonstrators, who say they have been camping peacefully at the site since mid-August.

The farmers announced that a village panchayat will be convened on Sunday to decide the next course of action. At that gathering, the farming community will collectively discuss their strategy going forward, including a possible decision to gherao, or lay siege to, the authority's office. The protesters emphasized that they have been raising their demands in a peaceful manner for a long period, but the refusal of officials to engage in any talks has now forced them to consider escalating their agitation.

Farmer Kailash Nagar, speaking from the protest site, said that for 35 days the farmers have been demonstrating with complete unity and discipline. He stressed that the administration and the authority should come to the protest site and talk directly with the farmers about their demands. Nagar added that if the farmers' voice continues to be ignored, the panchayat on Sunday will finalize the next strategy.

The protest drew support from a wider region today. Farmers from several villages across Gautam Buddh Nagar and the Noida area arrived at the dharna site to express solidarity. Sarpanchs and pradhans from neighboring villages also visited the site, pledging their support to the Kanawani farmers and showing unity behind the demands being raised.

Among those present at the protest site today were Pandit Likhiram Sharma, Praveen Nagar, Chatar Singh Nagar, Shrichand Nagar, Mahendra Nagar, Deepchand Nagar, Vinod Nagar, Satish Nagar, Vijay Nagar, Ashok Kasana, and a large number of other farmers.

The protest is taking place in Kanawani, and the situation remains tense as the farmers await a response from the authorities before Sunday's decisive panchayat meeting.