Women Protesters Set Up Kitchens On Roads To Provide Food To Farmers, Policemen & Journalists

Braving the winter chill, thousands of women from different parts of Punjab have assembled along with thousands of male farmers at Delhi's borders to take on the Centre against its new farm laws.

Many of these women have come out in support with their children and sleep in the open as the protests continue around the national capital.

Around 15,000 women including the elderly have joined the farmers'' agitation against the Centre''s agriculture-related laws, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) leader Shingara Singh said.

¡°Women are giving their immense support to the ongoing agitation against the farm laws,¡± Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) leader Harinder Kaur Bindu said over the phone.

The Tribune

A large number of women have stayed put at the Tikri border in Haryana near West Delhi. Away from their homes, the women are determined to accomplish their aim of getting the ¡°black laws¡± scrapped, they said.

¡°We are not bothered about the cold weather conditions,¡± said 40-year-old Paramjit Kaur who came all the way from Bathinda to participate in the agitation.

"We tell our fellow protesters that it's going to be a long battle and they should stay put," she said.

The women are actively participating in the agitation and raise their voice against the farm laws when the stage is set up at a particular place on the road.

¡°Many women are good speakers and they share their opinions on the recently passed farm laws by the Centre,¡± said Bindu.

Folk songs replace slogans; kitchens to cook

The slogans are replaced with folk songs of Punjab.

BCCL

At the protest spot, the women also carry out chores such as cooking food and washing clothes. Temporary kitchns have been set up to cook food for the farmers and the same is being offered to policemen on duty and journalists on the field.

They sleep in their tractor-trolleys which have been turned into temporary shelters by the farmers.

Some women protesters have also brought their children to the agitation. The kids have brought their textbooks along so that their studies don't suffer, Bindu said.

Residents of nearby villages in Haryana are letting the women use their bathrooms and are also providing hot water for baths.