Surge in COVID cases in villages: Haryana CM urges farmers to suspend protest

Chandigarh (Haryana) [India], May 14 (ANI): Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Thursday urged farmers to suspend their protest against farm laws amid the Covid-19 situation, claiming that their movements to and from dharna sites were spreading the infection in villages.
While addressing the press conference, CM Khattar said, "In view of the Covid-19 pandemic, I once again appeal to the farmer leaders to suspend their protests. The only goal, of all of us, should be to save the lives of people in the time of this crisis. There is nothing more than human life."
Following these protests, the Chief Minister informed that in many villages, hotspots have emerged because from there, people are regularly coming and going back from dharna sites.
"A month ago, I appealed to farmer leaders to suspend protest amid Covid-19 spread and can resume it after the situation is under control. Now, it has emerged that these dharnas have made a few villages hotspot as villagers travelled back and forth to protest sites", said Haryana CM ML Khattar.
"Covid Hotspots have been identified in rural areas. 8,000 teams of the Health Department will go door-to-door in the villages to conduct health check-ups of the people", he said.
"The government will provide free insurance of Rs 2 lakh on the death of a person up to the age of 50 from poor families. The premium of Beema Yojana will be deposited by the state government in their accounts and from the same account, the amount of premium will be deducted", Khattar said.
Meanwhile, in wake of the pandemic, the Haryana government on May 10 announced a lockdown in the state till May 17.
The farmers have been protesting at different borders of the national capital since November 26 last year against the farm laws passed by the Centre.
They have been protesting against the three farm laws: Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act 2020, the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act 2020. (ANI)