Makeshift Beds & Months Worth Of Food: Farmers Protesting Against Farm Bills Dig In Their Heels

A farmer rests beside a tractor along a road blocked by police to stop farmers from marching to?New Delhi, to protest against the central government's recent agricultural reforms, at the Delhi-Haryana state border in Kundli.

Pro-farmers slogans blare out from speakers at the blockade, with some protesters standing on tractors brandishing swords and spears. About 250 farmers from Gujarat will join the peaceful protest at Singhu Border in Delhi.

Amid the countrywide call for Bharat Bandh on December 8, the farmers' protests around Delhi borders have entered day 12. In the picture a farmer prepares food along a road blocked by police.

With over 3,00,000 farmers already protesting in Delhi, demonstrations are also growing in other cities of India. Latest reports suggest that over 40 farmers at the protest site in Delhi are already showing symptoms of COVID, such as high fever, cough, and fatigue, and refuse to get tested or be admitted to hospitals nearby. In the picture, a farmer from Rauni village in Ludhiana district of the northern Indian state of Punjab is getting dressed at a temporary shelter.

Peaceful protests are underway at Delhi's Singhu and Tikri borders, where thousands of farmers from Punjab, Haryana and parts of Uttar Pradesh have been camping for more than 10 days. In the picture, a farmer performs his morning prayers inside a temporary shelter.

Union Agriculture Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar, who's part of the Centre's negotiating team with the farmers, said they need more time for discussions and a fresh proposal will be tabled soon. In the picture below, a farmer takes bath early in the morning.

Farmers urged people to extend their support non-violently and said their protest was not meant to "cause problems for the common man," In the picture, a farmer does his morning chores beside a vehicle.

"Tomorrow's Bharat Bandh is from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm. It is a symbolic protest. We will begin at 11:00 am so everyone can reach the office on time... Services such as ambulances, even weddings, can go on. People can show their card and leave," Bharatiya Kisan Union Spokesperson Rakesh Tikait said.

Members of farm unions will block national highways and occupy toll plazas. In Delhi, most of the traders are supporting the Bharat Bandh call.

Almost every opposition party in the country has extended support to the farmers' protest and the call for Bharat Bandh. In the picture, farmers eat lunch along a highway.