Narendra Singh Tomar, farm law, farmer, farmer protest, COVID-19, farmer death, Eluru , Andhra Pradesh, Ayodhya, PM Modi, Sunny Deol

17 December 2020

• Farmers' protest: Cremation of Sikh preacher on Friday

  The body of Baba Ram Singh, the Sikh priest who committed suicide by shooting self at Singhu border of the national capital on Wednesday in protest against the Centre's farm laws, was kept in Nanaksar Gurdwara in Singhra village in Haryana's Karnal district on Thursday for public homage. The cremation will be held on Friday.

  
  A large number of his followers, largely from Haryana and Punjab, have started assembling at the gurdwara since early morning. As a preventive step, the police have made special security arrangements there.

• Foundation for Ayodhya mosque to be laid on R-Day

  On the 71st anniversary of India as a Republic, the foundation will be laid for the much-awaited mosque in Ayodhya on the five acres of land mandated by Supreme Court following the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid final verdict.
  
  The blueprint for the mosque will be unveiled on Saturday. It will be a round-shaped structure. The masjid will come up, 20km away from the Ram Janmabhoomi site, at Dhannipur village, exactly six months after the Sunni Waqf Board constituted the mosque trust -- Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation.

• Pesticide residues caused Eluru's mysterious illness: Andhra govt

  The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and other organisations on Wednesday have found that pesticide residues were the reason for the outbreak of the mysterious illness in Andhra Pradesh's West Godavari district headquarters Eluru, a state government statement said.
  
  "The experts said a long term in-depth study is required to understand how these residues of pesticides entered the human body," it said. Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has entrusted this responsibility to AIIMS, and the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT).

• Farmers' protest: Sunny Deol gets enhanced security cover

  Actor and BJP's Punjab MP Sunny Deol has been given enhanced security cover after his comments supporting the Central government over the new farm laws, officials said on Wednesday.
  
  The Central government has provided Y-category security to Deol of 11 personnel, comprising two commandos. Deol, the MP from Gurdaspur, posted a statement on Twitter on December 6, saying that people were trying to stir trouble and the matter should be kept between the farmers and government.

• Farmers stir: Supply chains hit in north India, industries impacted

  Due to the farmers' agitation, the supply chains across north India have been severely hit because of the closure of major routes, including the National Highway connecting Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir to the national capital, which has greatly impacted businesses.
  
  The hosiery industry in Punjab's industrial town Ludhiana has been badly impacted by the farmers' agitation. Sudarshan Jain, President of the Knitwear and Apparel Manufacturers Association of Ludhiana, told media agency that the textile industry was first hit badly by the coronavirus pandemic and now the industry is severely affected by the farmer's agitation.

• Farm laws to bring revolutionary change in lives of farmers says, Tomar

  Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar has once again described the three farm laws of the central government as farmer-friendly and said that the process of reforms in the agriculture sector has started and it will bring revolutionary changes in the lives of farmers.
  
  Tomar and BJP's Rajya Sabha member Jyotiraditya Scindia arrived on Wednesday to participate in the farmers' conference organised by the BJP in Gwalior. On this occasion, Tomar said, "I want to assure the farmers that the process of agrarian reform which has started under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is going to bring revolutionary changes in the lives of farmers."