The state government has adopted a carrot-and-stick approach to prevent protesting farmers from entering the state capital. The long march started from Nashik on Wednesday. The state machinery has initiated negotiations with the leadership of the peasant movement on one hand; and on the other, it has mobilised a police force which is raising barricades and stationing water canons at various locations as precautionary measures. The farmers intend to march into the financial capital on February 27. Despite the government's measures and overtures, the protesting farmers are determined to come into Mumbai to press for their charter of demands. Their demands include pensions, transferring rights to forest lands to tribal communities, implementation of the Dr Swaminathan commission report for a fair price of crops, complete loan waiver without terms and conditions and a one-time payment to sugar cane farmers. A March 2018, a mammoth number of farmers had marched to Mumbai under the banner of the Akhil Bhartiya Kisan Sabha (ABKS) to press for the same demands. Irrigation minister Girish Mahajan has been entrusted with the task of convincing the farmers to call off the march. "Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis wants to avert the optics of thousands of farmers marching into the state capital just before the Lok Sabha polls. Hence, the early intervention," said a source, adding, "In case the farmers do not step back, police force will be used to disperse them." "The government is trying to prevent us from coming to Mumbai," Ashok Dhawale, president of ABKS told DNA. While speaking from Ambe-Bahula village on Nasik-Mumbai highway, he said, "We are surprised by such massive preventive measures." Dhawale said the leaders had a meeting with Mahajan on Wednesday, which went on for more than three hours. "We demanded written assurance, not oral promises, which he promised would be given by the CM soon. However, there are still some issues that await resolution," he added. Dhawale said the protest march would be called off only after the written assurance, signed by Fadnavis, convinced farmers. "Earlier, we had three meetings with Mahajan, but he was not able to offer concrete assurances. If the government uses force to stop us, we will have to use other methods to press for our demands," he concluded. Write Solution Irrigation Minister Girish Mahajan has met farmer leaders, but they will call off the protest only after a written assurance, signed by the CM.

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