Karnataka - Mangalore   

Farmers oppose ASEAN pact

MANGALORE: Activists of various organisations staged a demonstration in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office here on Friday in protest against the Union Government signing the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) agreement, recently.

Speakers who addressed a gathering said that the agreement would adversely affect the agriculture sector in the country. The agreement had provided tariff concession to approximately 4,000 commodities, including 489 agriculture goods.

As a result, different agriculture commodities would be imported in large quantity in the coming years, affecting the marketing of domestic agriculture products, they said.

All along, the farmers were carrying on with their agricultural activities unmindful of the fact that they were no longer profitable. But, the ASEAN agreement was a blow on the livelihood of farmers, they alleged.

Activists from Karnataka Prantha Raitha Sangha (KPRS), National Fish Workers’ Forum (NFF), Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS), and Coastal Karnataka Country Boat Fishermen’s Federation took part in the demonstration.

Vasudeva Boloor, general secretary of NFF, spoke on the occasion.

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