{"id":67843,"date":"2024-03-05T23:29:08","date_gmt":"2024-03-05T23:29:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/protesting-farmers-cut-off-as-india-tops-list-of-digital-blackouts\/"},"modified":"2024-03-05T23:29:08","modified_gmt":"2024-03-05T23:29:08","slug":"protesting-farmers-cut-off-as-india-tops-list-of-digital-blackouts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/protesting-farmers-cut-off-as-india-tops-list-of-digital-blackouts\/","title":{"rendered":"Protesting farmers cut off as India tops list of digital blackouts"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\u2022 Farmers march on Delhi again to demand higher prices for crops
\u2022 Activists believe communication shutdowns aim to quell dissent<\/strong><\/p>\n

SHAMBHU: They have been beaten with canes, doused in tear gas and blocked by concrete barricades and metal spikes but the thousands of farmers trying to march<\/a> to India\u2019s capital to demand higher crop prices also face an invisible barrier \u2014 digital blackouts.<\/p>\n

As their caravan of tractors and trucks moved from the northern state of Punjab towards New Delhi, the farmers found their phones going dead as state authorities imposed temporary internet shutdowns.<\/p>\n

It is not the first time authorities have cut the internet \u2014 India imposed the highest number of internet shutdowns<\/a> in the world in 2022 \u2014 and campaigners fear more digital crackdowns ahead of elections expected by May.<\/p>\n

Farm union leaders are seeking<\/a> guarantees, backed by law, of more state support or a minimum<\/a> purchase price for crops.<\/p>\n

Since Feb 12, Haryana state authorities have cut access to mobile internet services at regular intervals and for several days at a time. They said they did so to \u201cstop the spread of misinformation and rumours\u201d and to prevent the mobilisation of \u201cmobs of agitators and demonstrators\u201d, according to local media.<\/p>\n

The farmers, many of whom are members of the Sikh religious minority from Punjab, say the shutdowns made it hard to get medical help for the injured and to source food. It also cut them off from their leaders, making coordination difficult.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re already far away from home and the communication blackout adds to our miseries,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Neither the chief minister\u2019s office in Haryana nor the state\u2019s telecoms ministry responded to requests for comment.<\/p>\n

Campaigners have accused the Hindu nationalist BJP government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi of repeatedly using internet shutdowns to stifle opposition.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe alarming trend of internet shutdowns coupled with widespread online censorship is a grim reflection of digital authoritarianism, particularly in the lead-up to elections,\u201d said Gayatri Malhotra of the digital rights organization, Internet Freedom Foundation.<\/p>\n

No signal<\/strong><\/p>\n

India frequently uses internet shutdowns<\/a> to control protests including in occupied Kashmir and northeastern Manipur state where dozens have died in ethnic clashes since last year.<\/p>\n

Mobile access has also often been cut during elections and examinations and these shutdowns were often imposed for indefinite periods and without the publication of shutdown orders, in violation of a 2020 judgement by the nation\u2019s top court.<\/p>\n

The state of Haryana ranks fourth in the country for the highest number of internet shutdowns, following Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, and Manipur, according to Delhi-based advocacy group Software Freedom Law Center.<\/p>\n

Although the farmers\u2019 protest is confined to Punjab for now, their complaints of falling incomes resonate more widely, highlighting a perception in India\u2019s huge rural hinterland that Modi has done too little to support the farming community and raise living standards.<\/p>\n

Over 40 per cent of India\u2019s 1.4 billion people are dependent on agriculture and many say they have suffered economically under Modi.<\/p>\n

\u2018State of darkness\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hardeep Singh, for example, grows wheat and rice on his four-acre farm, but like many he said poor returns on investments, including pesticides and farm equipment, made it increasingly difficult to make ends meet without guaranteed prices for his produce.<\/p>\n

While pollsters say Modi will almost certainly win a rare third term in office, the discontent of farmers will be a headache for years to come.<\/p>\n

The federal agriculture ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the protesters\u2019 demands.<\/p>\n

Many farmers also said signal jammers were being used in the area, preventing them from contacting people in their villages to ask for food supplies.<\/p>\n

Published in Dawn, March 5th, 2024<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u2022 Farmers march on Delhi again to demand higher prices for crops\u2022 Activists believe communication shutdowns aim to quell dissent SHAMBHU: They have been beaten with canes, doused in tear gas and blocked by concrete barricades and metal spikes but the thousands of farmers trying to march to India\u2019s capital to demand higher crop prices 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